Southland Goes Big for Daffodil Day

Southlanders are going all out for Daffodil Day this year, and the Cancer Society event has transformed into a month-long event over the years.

Otago Southland Cancer Society southern community manager Gavin Booth said the great thing about Daffodil Day is that Southlanders get behind the cause every year.

Cafes, schools, sports clubs and community groups all have their own fundraisers, ranging from quiz nights, selling cheese rolls, and Invercargill Central are doing a Daffodil Day duck hunt on August 28.

Tokanui will be holding their annual auction at the local pub, which raises tens of thousands every year for the Cancer Society Southland.

One year they raised $34,000, “it just shows how strong our communities are and how we look after our vulnerable,” he said.

“Every town in Southland has an area co-ordinator and have been doing this job for decades.”

Come into Invercargill Central and take a selfie with the Ford Ranger to win a $500 voucher, or go in the draw to win a family holiday to Te Anau, and scan the QR code to make a donation.

Macaulay Motors has been sponsoring the Daffodil Day for years and will also be donating $200 from every Ranger sold in August, along with others around the country.

One in three New Zealanders will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime – and when that happens, the Cancer Society is there with counselling, free transport to treatment, accommodation for families, prevention programmes and life-saving research.

“We want people out there to know that we care,” Gavin said.

While there are chemotherapy services in the south, many people have to travel to Dunedin for radiation treatment, and the Cancer Society can help people tap into national funding assistance or travel costs.

As well regional co-ordinators, the Southern branch has over 400 volunteers, and on August 28, most of the prominent street corners in Invercargill’s CBD will have people out with their collection buckets on Daffodil Day. For more go to the Otago / Southland Caner Society Facebook Page.