Moe Brigade's Tara Paulsen and Steve Cassar
Moe Fire Brigade volunteers will once again be hitting the streets next weekend to add to the local tally of Good Friday Appeal funds raised.
Over the past 30 years Moe brigade raised money every year for the Royal Children’s Hospital, and to date the volunteers have contributed more than $1m from Moe and Newborough.
For some members it means more to them just rattling their tins.
As a child, Moe brigade’s 2nd Lieutenant Tara Paulsen suffered from croup which triggered severe asthma attacks and she was frequently admitted to the Royal Children’s Hospital. After several visits they discovered that damp air was a trigger, allowing the condition to be treated.
“I’m so fortunate for these amazing doctors that I haven’t required any medication since I was 15,” Tara said.
“I am only here today because of the RCH and I’m not sure I can ever truly put into words how grateful I am.”
This year Tara, along with other members of Moe brigade, will be collecting outside the local McDonald’s roundabout at the corner of the Princes Highway and Lloyd St.
When they’ve finished they will take their collection tins to the Newborough Bowls Club where the coins will be tallied and then added to the town’s overall total.
“The generosity of the community I see every year has helped save the lives of so many children,” Tara said.
Raising money for the Good Friday Appeal has also become a family affair, with Tara’s father John saving all his coins throughout the year and giving them to CFA fundraisers.
“For the past ten years, dad has riden his motorbike from Melbourne to Moe to put the money he’s kept into the CFA volunteers' tins,” Tara said.
CFA members have supported the Good Friday Appeal since 1951 (71 years), volunteering their time and raising funds for the hospital and have raised more than $35 million. The 2022 Good Friday Appeal will be held on Friday 15 April.