Donations cover charity dinner for shelter funds

Kiri Swannell and Kevin Swannell.

Tables and tummies will be full at a fundraising dinner for Limitless Hope.

The rotating gourmet dining and auction event will be held on Saturday at All Saints' Church Hall in Taradale - with businesses coming on board to donate nearly everything needed for the evening.

It sold out with a few days to go and is expected to raise a nice sum for the charity, started by Kiri and Kevin Swannell, who aim to launch Hawke's Bay's first ever Emergency Shelter.

Organiser Diana Ellingham first met Mrs Swannell in her capacity as chairman of the Napier Food Bank, and was impressed by her attitude and a Soup Truck she runs with husband Kevin and any number of their six children in Napier on Monday nights.

"We are both in the same line of giving people a hand up when the wheels fall off," Ms Ellingham said.

"I wondered if I could do something with the food bank. We looked at a trust but were all on the same page, doing the same thing."

After hearing Property Brokers had donated a two-storey house to the Swannells, she realised they would need "a lot more help" and put her thinking cap on.

She came up with a dinner and spread the word via friend networks. Each of the 11 tables will have their own cook, with meat and other produce given free to keep costs down.

An auction features exciting getaways - from Gisborne to Waimarama, two nights at The Sheraton Fiji - to wine and meal vouchers.

"Everyone has been so supportive and generous," she said.

It was key for the Swannell family to get as much backing as possible, and this was yet another way to raise funds and awareness.