Running of the Balls needs a charity to donate $10,000 to

Juan and Janelle Coffey, owners of JJ Roofing, are seeking a charity to donate $10,000 to from proceeds of the annual Running of the Balls, held during Vintage Weekend.

A Whanganui charity could get up to $10,000 by registering before October 30 to be the recipient of proceeds from JJ Roofing’s Running of the Balls second annual event to be held on Wellington Anniversary Day (January 22, 2024) during Whanganui’s Vintage Weekend.

The inaugural event was held in January this year.

“We provide the halftime entertainment for Plumber Dan’s annual trolley derby,” said Juan Coffey, owner of JJ Roofing, with his wife Janelle.

“Mangatepopo Camp, near Mount Ruapehu, was the recipient of $9800 to buy a big gas oven and hobs for the camp kitchen. The camp was on the verge of closing, it has a new board and a new custodian who have made improvements. Schools are coming through and using it again, from throughout the North Island.

“We drop 1000 red balls from the top of Drews Ave, they roll down the hill into a race then into the little JJ Roofing house. The first ball in wins first prize, then there are second and third prizes. Randomly numbered blue balls are used as spot prizes (all prizes donated by local businesses).

“It’s quite spectacular seeing the balls go down the hill. Last year we drone videoed the Running of the Balls, Kiwi TV was there and about 3000 people watched the event. Plumber Dan’s trolley derby draws around 4000-5000 people, and most stayed at the lunch break to watch the Running of the Balls.

“My mother and I came up with the idea, we are both artists and creative people, we brainstormed one day - we were sitting in a waiting room in a hospital. We were thinking of red balloons - the colour of our business. We wanted some kind of race to allocate prizes. We were inspired by Plumber Dan’s Duck Race (2000 ducks go down the Whanganui River in November each year), his community awareness, and how he gives back.

“We wanted to follow in his footsteps. I knew it had to be red, and had to be round. So it was red balls, but what street? Drews Ave aligned with Plumber Dan having a soap box derby and looking for something for the lunch break entertainment. It all just fell into place.

“You’ve got the annual Running of the Bulls in Pamplona in Spain, so it’s a play on that with balls instead of bulls,” he said.

Juan is a mixed media artist, he has held exhibitions in Whanganui. His mother, Julz Coffey, is a renowned artist in Whanganui, at the Boring community gallery, whom he draws a lot of inspiration from.

Janelle and Juan worked together as a team to make it happen, with their crew at JJ Roofing helping out as well as receptionist Caitlyn.

“We want to give back to the community - Whanganui has been really good to us,” said Janelle.

“What we’re looking for is a community charity organisation that could do with a cash injection of up to $10,000. We have an application form we can email out, we need them to email us and tell us a bit about themselves. We want to support a registered charity that has a project, something they’re fundraising for.”

■ Applications close on October 30, email office@jjroofing.co.nz. The following week we will contact the short-listed charities to get more information about them. On November 13 the successful charity will be contacted, and then tickets go on sale on Monday, November 27. On Saturday, January 13 and 20, tickets will be sold at the River Market.