Good Friday Appeal: Tongala CFA continues stumping for the Royal Children’s Hospital

The rural-metro divide means little to the Tongala CFA, who have been stumping for the Good Friday Appeal now for 40 years-plus.

The Tongala CFA has been supporting the Good Friday Appeal for more than 40 years, and this year will be no different.

A 20-year veteran of the Tongala CFA, Sue Duggan has experienced first-hand the services provided by the Royal Children’s Hospital when her son was just six months old and had to make several visits to deal with a lazy eye.

Members of Tongala’s Good Friday Appeal team. Pictured: (L-R) Mackenzie Cowley, Publican Sue Walsh, Sarah Lloyde and the CFA’s Sue Duggan. Picture: Zoe Phillips

“They were fantastic, the staff,” she said. “They were specialised in what they were doing, compassionate, understanding, empathetic and explained to me the whole picture of what was going on, and it touched me.

“The treatment was the same for everybody — I was amazed and overwhelmed by the care and support that they showed everybody.”

Every year the Tongala CFA do a town-wide doorknock and get the firetrucks to go out to the far reaches of the rural town to raise money, as well as having the station open on Good Friday for people who missed out on donating earlier.

“We’re lucky here because all the businesses support us,” said Sue.

“We’re a very dedicated and enthusiastic team, but we’re not as big as we’d like.”

Regardless of their small size, the team definitely punches above its weight, with the town having donated $160,000 over 40 years.

Sue says the donations target for this year is to beat last year’s haul, which came out to just above $5700.

“A lot of people from here have been associated with the RCH,” she said. “They’ve had kids in there or know someone who has.

“It’s just so heartwarming, and it doesn’t really matter if it’s the RCH or something else, this community just gets it, they never ever let anybody down.

“It’s a really close-knit community and I’m proud to be a part of it.”