A disco held last week to raise money for a little girl recovering from a brain tumour shows the Guyra community’s generosity of spirit, organisers said.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The “Penny for Peta” disco was held at the Guyra Bowling Club on Friday, March 23.
Peta Kerr, 10, was diagnosed in June last year with the cancer, and underwent surgery, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy in Newcastle. She resumed school this term, and is now in Year 5 at Bald Blair Public School.
Related stories:
Maare Foster, president of the Bald Blair Public School P&C Association, organised the event.
“She thought it would be nice to have a disco for the whole community to say thank you to everyone for supporting the family to raise a little bit of money, but also so Peta can come along and enjoy it as well,” said Kristy Campion from the P&C.
“The idea was for the kids to have fun. We’ve been so busy fundraising, and there’s been so much hard work by all the families, not only at our school but within the Guyra community, that it was a good way of just having fun.”
Around 60 students attended the disco, some from Bald Blair, a small school with only 21 families and 31 students, and others from Guyra Central School and St Mary’s. Some came all the way up from Armidale.
The children enjoyed dancing, paper plane flying, guessing the number of M&Ms in a jar, and a sausage sizzle.
Businesses in Guyra and Armidale supported the event. Butchers and shops contributed food, and bakers supplied bread. Parents cooked sausages, while church groups and people from other schools helped set up the event or manned the canteen. Families donated prizes (diaries, balls, dinosaurs, and books) for the best dressed child and the best dancer.
"It was really quite a community effort,” Ms Campion said.
The disco raised more than $1100, and donations are still coming in. The money raised will help Peta undergo hyperbaric oxygen treatment in Sydney next term to stop the tumour coming back.
The disco, combined with a lamb drive last month, a raffle to be drawn next week, and individual donations, has already raised around $6500, and Ms Campion hopes to reach $15,000.
“It was quite an achievement, considering we’ve only got 21 families at the school,” she said. “For the amount of people here, to do what we’ve done has been remarkable, but I think everyone just is so willing to help.
“It’s not only our school that’s doing it; it’s the whole community, and other organisations are supporting us as well.”
Her classmates have been glad to see Peta return to school, Ms Campion said.
“She’s just a lovely-natured girl, a pleasure to have at the school, a pleasure to have in the class, and all the kids love her. . She is a beautiful little girl, and a lovely family.”
Peta’s return to Bald Blair Public School was very smooth, her mother Kate Kane said.
“She’s so happy to be back at school; I’ve never seen a child so excited about the idea of school!
“She was very excited to be with her friends, and she’s really enjoying getting back to normality and catching up with everybody.”
Peta, “a very athletic child”, used to train twice a week down in Armidale; she’s now trying to regain her fitness. Ms Kane worked with her to keep her schooling up last year, and said that Peta is on top of her maths.
“She's just a gentle, kind, quiet child, but she's got an amazing determination and strength. She's a special little person, that's for sure; she's been quite inspirational, actually - she's been so brave, and never complaining. She's just been amazing.”
Ms Kane said she was overwhelmed by the support from the community.
“They’ve been absolutely amazing,” she said. “I’d just like to take the opportunity to thank everybody; I can’t thank everybody enough!
“Sara Hancock’s been absolutely amazing; she organised the lamb drive, which raised a remarkable amount of money. I’d like to thank all the farmers that contributed. Kristy Campion and Donna Davidson at school, and Maare Foster, who organised the disco. Mel Morgan’s been amazing, and the P&C. I’d just like to thank anybody who’s contributed in any way, really!”
