Fundraising
Welcome to the Fundraising section you will find 4 major fundraisers that have occurred in Orange NSW. I have placed these on this site because I (Fiona) am directly involved with each one. The Ronald McDonald House Orange, Orange Star Search and the Orange Christmas street party are all ongoing fundraisers. Whereas the Fairy Sparkle Garden was a previous event that not only raised funds to build a garden but provided a therapeutic garden for sick children and their families. The community of Orange and surrounding communities in the Greater West have worked hard to bring about funds to support each of these fundraisers. There has also been lots of fun times and enjoyable events which have brought people together. Read on to find out more.
Ronald McDonald House Orange (Continual Event)
Orange Ronald McDonald House
Orange NSW and surrounding communities are working hard to raise 1.5 Million dollars to build the 13th Ronald McDonald House for sick children and their families in country NSW. Read on for more details
Last year a steering committee was formed to establish a Ronald McDonald House in Orange to meet the needs of families in Orange and across the Central West. Orange Base Hospital is one of the major referral hospitals in NSW. It is the main referral hospital in the Greater Western Area Health Service, which covers a third of the State from Bathurst to Broken Hill. The hospital provides a wide range of services to the residents of Orange and surrounding communities, particularly west of the city.
However there is a critical shortage of emergency and long-term accommodation for the families of children seeking treatment at Orange Base. There have been numerous instance were families have been forced to sleep in their car to stay close to their child. One of the services provided at Orange base Hospital is a regional tertiary referral service for children and young people aged 0-16 yrs - admitting on average 1300 children per year. Of those 1300 children, 60 per cent come from outside the Orange postcode.
The Orange Base Hospital children's ward currently has 15 beds, four of which are for children and adolescents with mental health issues. The Orange Base Hospital maternity unit is also a major referral centre for moderate and high-risk pregnancies.
Facilities for parents in the children's ward are currently a recliner chair beside their child, one shower that is also used by the sick children, and one toilet out in the corridor, which is used by all visitors within the hospital. There are no cooking facilities but there is a microwave and a separate room for parents to make a hot drink. This room also doubles as the family conference room for the children's ward and the female medical ward.
There are minimal facilities in the maternity ward for parents whose baby is in the special care nursery. Currently parents who live outside Orange whose baby requires long term treatment are given the opportunity of a ward bed and considered as boarders. Alternatively they find their own accommodation.
There are plans for a new hospital, with work to commence in 2007. These plans include the expansion of child and adolescent mental health in-patient services.
Currently the paediatric ward has four beds for these young people but this will expand to 10 stand alone beds plus a rehabilitation service where the young people come each day to learn living skills and school readiness.
Based on this demand and the support already demonstrated by the Orange community, Ronald McDonald House Charities Australia supports the establishment of a Ronald McDonald House in Orange.
The proposed house will be built adjacent to the new hospital that will be built in the grounds of Bloomfield. While the final design for a Ronald McDonald House in Orange is some way off being finalised, the early indications are it would include long stay rooms suitable for families from outside areas close to Orange and a day stay area suitable for families in and around Orange.
In the short time since fundraising commenced the Ronald McDonald House steering committee and the associated events committee have raised more than $200,000. While still in the preliminary stages Electrolux has indicated they will support the project. Cadia Valley Operations, owned by Newcrest Mining, has also backed the project.
Numerous smaller businesses in Orange (too many to list here) have pledged financial and in kind support for the establishment of the house here, including Westruss supplying roofing and Angus Robertson fitting out a house library.
Ronald McDonald House Charities Australia provides ongoing financial support for the existing 12 Ronald McDonald Houses across Australia and that principle would extend to Orange.
The proposal for a Ronald McDonald House in Orange has already created a lot of interest in our community, and the early indications are the project would receive strong support. Service clubs, the building industry, the medical fraternity and local media have all pledged their support.
If you feel that you can help out in anyway whether that be with organising a Fundraising event or would like to forward a donation of goods or money then we would love to hear from you. If there is any additional information you need or any further explanations required please don't hesitate to contact us via the web. Chairperson Joanne Lewis PH (02)63631988 Or Secretary Nick Redmond via mail PO Box 237 Orange NSW 2800.
Orange Star Search
Orange Star Search has been running for two years now and is an event which encourages people to show off their vocal talents on stage. Star Search was to be a fundraiser for the Fairy Sparkle Garden which never eventuated so not to be lost I approached the Community Radio and Theatres (my place of work) to see if some people from each place would be interested in setting up a committee and putting Orange Star Search in motion.
A committee was formed and the wheels were in motion. Our first year brought about 60 contestants who showed off their talents from all areas of the Central West. There were three heats to this event that brought about 12 finalists who sang at the Gala night. It was certainly a very entertaining event with a lot of great talent that we wouldn't otherwise have known of.
This is our third year that Star Search has run again with a revised version and again singers came from far and wide. The recipients of this year’s fundraiser are Orange Ronald McDonald House and Orange Regional Music Conservatorium. The Gala evening will be spectacular with a mix of music and ages. We have several judges Graham Sattler, Bevan Radburn, Trish Amuller and Rachel Tome just to name a few. They have given the singers some valuable feedback. It is one of those events where you could see people grow with confidence and the audience loved the entertainment put on for them.
A huge thankyou goes out to all the contestants who make this event possible and of course the committee members and community who supported these very entertaining events. It goes without saying but I will, that without the support of the people mentioned above then the funds wouldn’t have been raised, the community wouldn't have been given the chance to see what talent we have out here in the country and if we didn’t have the contestants then Orange Star Search wouldn’t have been an event for the singers and the community to enjoy.
Photo Gallery
There is a good chance that Orange Star Search will run again next year so stay tuned in this section as it will be updated with recipients details, future dates, rules, conditions and entry forms.
Orange Christmas Street Party (Annual Event)
Orange Christmas Street Party
A committee that I find particularly enjoyable is the Christmas Street Party committee held by Orange City Council. Council provides for the community with the financial assistance of a Corporate Sponsor an evening that is enjoyed by all ages. Make a note in your diary for the date Friday 15th of December this year, at 5.30 and the fun will begin in Summer Street Orange with the biggest Christmas Street Party. There will be entertainment, rides, food, stalls, educational areas and lets not forget the visit from Santa. This is a special event in which all families and friends can come together and celebrate the Christmas atmosphere.
We are looking for a Corporate Sponsor to support this community event to the value of $20,000. They will receive exclusive naming rights and help put a smile on many children’s faces as they celebrate Christmas and have lots of fun. If you feel you can help with sponsorship of this special 10th Anniversary Christmas Street Party then please contact us.
Fairy Sparkle Garden Orange (Previous Event)
Fairy Sparkle Garden Orange Base Hospital
Back in 2002 I read a story in Family Circle about a lovely lady called Fairy Sparkle, she visits, talks and sings with sick children and their families when they are in hospital. Fairy Sparkle has been doing this for many years and loves every minute of happiness she can create.
Randwick Children's Hospital had just had the opening of their Fairy Sparkle garden and what a glorious site it was. Fairy Sparkle along with many devoted people and sponsors had built this garden of intrigue and fascination for children. It was when reading this story that I noticed the words Fairy Sparkle had said "I would like to see every hospital with 10 or more beds for children with an enchanted garden."
It was from this point that I became involved with Fairy Sparkle. It didn't take long to contact her and our hospital General Manager to see if we could have a Fairy Sparkle garden at Orange Base Hospital. Once that was confirmed to go ahead the wheels were in motion. A committee was formed and with Fairy Sparkles expertise the work begun.
The planning stage involved the help of children from local schools who shared their vision of what they would like in their garden. With the children’s ideas on board and suggestions from the children’s ward staff the plan for the garden was designed. The next step was to raise the $50,000 so the garden could be built. In a period of eight months and many fundraising events this figure was reached, in fact the amount went above the $50,000. Additional funds raised went directly into the children’s ward so there was an added bonus internally as well.
There were numerous events organised both by the committee and the community. There were plenty of memorable times and one character from our fundraising days that I still remember was "Penny the Pig". It was a human sized pink pig that ate money and then gave you a snort and a thankyou for your generosity. To see a pictorial show of the Fairy Sparkle gardens progress visit the photo gallery on this site, I really do recommend it! The building, landscaping and colours in the garden were an amazing transformation to what was there. We even had fairies in the garden literally thanks to well known Orange Artist Les Quick who hid little fairies throughout with paintings. There are water features, a bridge, music and lots of interesting plants, shrubs and trees with lots of colours from the flowers. The garden has become a well used area by children, families and staff and is a credit to the community for supporting the venture.
The Fairy Sparkle Garden was officially opened in November 2002 and was a day filled with fun and excitement. Many people had the opportunity to walk though the garden and see the sites. Actually the community were able to walk through two gardens one for the children’s ward and an additional garden for the adults and their families that was built with some of the extra money adjacent to Kenna ward.
Today we have a garden that is very much alive and looks like it has been there for a very long time. The garden when built was designed as much as possible to be transportable with the knowledge that a new hospital would be built in the near future. It was a project that I was very glad to be a part of and I thank Fairy Sparkle, my committee members, and the community that brought our garden to fruition. If you would like me to do a presentation with regards to the process of this project or would like further details then please email me with your request. If you haven’t visited the Fairy Sparkle Garden photo gallery then please remember to do so, it is certainly an experience you will enjoy.
Volunteers needed
The Fairy Sparkle garden is in need of a couple of volunteer gardeners to help with gardening activities. You will need to have a police check which is a requirement of working at the hospital. Duties would include pruning, weeding, watering plants that need extra tender loving care, sweeping, cleaning out of two ponds and general garden maintenance. The area is not very big so you would probably only need to call in for a couple of hours per fortnight. We do have gardening tools available, you would just need to bring your own gloves to the garden.
If you are interested and would like to learn more then please contact us
The Teddy Bears Picnic and the Reading Programmes are future events that will happen in due course. If you are interested in being involved in any of the above fundraisers or the new ones listed below for the future then contact us.