At a handover ceremony during Uawa’s Matariki celebrations on Friday, EHRT chair Ian Parker said the $5400 donation will be used to upgrade the Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter’s two aging passenger headsets.

“These are vital for communications and noise reduction for our patients when the helicopter is in operation,” he said.

“That results in a less stressful flight for patients and, where appropriate, accompanying whanau at what may be a very challenging time in their lives.”

The donation came after local Toni Hale, of John’s Superette & Lotto, decided to drive a fundraiser to coincide with Westpac Bank’s annual Chopper Month.

She approached Tolaga Bay’s long-time Anglican Minister, Padre Bill Gray (QSM), to tap his networks for donations of muttons to raffle, and local farmer Sophie Land quickly booked a fundraising horse trek on her family’s Mangaone Station.

But they were cutting it fine: the last of the four raffles was drawn on May 31 – the last day of Chopper Month — the same day about 40 riders set off on their trek.

More than $3000 of the total was raised by the raffles of four whole muttons . . . one each donated by Berne and Tracy McNeil; Greg Shelton (QSM); and Mrs Land’s dad, Peter Reeves.

“Then a customer came into the superette and she had been on the helicopter twice, so she and her partner supplied one as well,” Toni says.

“We found the 40 tickets in each raffle sold quickly, with some people buying one in every raffle. The community really got behind it as they know how important it is to keep our rescue helicopter in the skies.”

Local shop owners added to the total with donation tins in stores, and between them the horse trekkers contributed $1800.

“We only had a couple of weeks’ notice so it was pretty tight,” says Sophie. “But everyone pulled together to make it happen like, for us, Caroline Kingi (Uawa Horse Sports) was an incredible help to get us over the line.”

The riders had a fantastic day with their three-hour trek followed by a shared kai in the woolshed, Sophie said.

“Being such short notice meant many people who wanted to come couldn’t make it, so we might have to go even bigger next year!”

Ian Parker said EHRT was grateful for the generosity of a community that had shown how much could be achieved when people came together for a common cause.”

“In this case it was made possible by the generosity of landowners and organisers passionate about supporting our rescue helicopter service, which is so important for all our rural communities.”

CAPTION: From left: Trust Tairāwhiti Eastland Rescue Helicopter pilot/base manager Shaun Stewart, fundraiser Sophie Land, Eastland Helicopter Rescue Trust chair Ian Parker, and fundraising organiser Toni Hale.