Northlanders dug deep to help pay for a $5 million cancer treatment unit in Whangarei. Yesterday, there was more digging, - the turning of the first sod on the site of the proposed new centre on Hospital Rd, adjacent to Whangarei Hospital.
The breaking of the ground signalled another milestone in a project that will construct The Jim Carney Cancer Treatment Centre, named after the prominent Whangarei businessman and philanthropist who died in November 2000. The Carney family Trust has contributed heavily to Project Promise - the fundraising campaign started five years ago, which has raised $3.67 million.
The final cost of the centre is expected to be around $5 million but the Northland District Health Board has agreed to contribute the balance.
Jim's wife Mary and DHB chief executive Nick Chamberlain did the "sod turning" honours at a ceremony attended by supporters of the project. Five years ago, the Northern Advocate was invited to form a partnership with the Northland Community Foundation, the team behind Project Promise. We were told in no uncertain terms by the then foundation chairman Jack Broome that the project would not work without media buy-in and support. Jack was preaching to the converted.
The fundraising campaign was a success though, because Northlanders reached into their hearts and pockets and gave money and time in a challenging and competitive fundraising environment. It was also reassuring to see recently that the money raised in Northland would also be spent in the region, with Whangarei company A-line Design and Build, together with a strong team of local sub-contractors, winning the construction contract. There might have been a degree of symbolism to yesterday's ceremony but work has begun!
