Michele, Author at Child Cancer Research Foundation

Georgia Lowry has a Dream!

Our young ambassador, Georgia Lowry, came up with an exciting new idea to raise funds for child cancer research. As part of the ‘Million Dollar Project’, Georgia has a dream to travel all around Australia in a small van to speak and raise $1 million to fund a Young Scientist Fellowship Program with the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF).

The Young Scientist Fellowship Program aims to seek out young scientific fellows on an international level, who would be interested in working in the CLCRF Lab in the Telethon Kids Institute. They will be mentored in their research career into child cancer. This fellowship will advance the legacy of research that Professor Ursula Kees and Dr Michael Willoughby set into place, moving the team closer to finding a cure and better treatment protocols for children.

To ‘fuel’ her dream, she needs the following things in place:

Firstly, she needs a small kombi van. So, if you or you know someone who is willing to donate a van in safe working condition, get in touch with the Foundation.
She will require a mechanic to help her fix the fan so it will travel around the country safely.
It needs to be fitted out with comfortable facilities and a bed so that she can live in it. So, let us know if you can help with this.
Someone who is willing to spray paint or graphic wrap the van with the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation Inc. logo.
Donations to help pay for her fuel and food.

With all these things in place, Georgia will then be able to travel around Australia and raise a million dollars for the project! Will you help her?

If you can help Georgia in any way, please give CLCRF a call on (08) 9363 7400 or email [email protected].

Geoff Cattach — Lifetime Achievement Award

On 18 January 2018, AMP honoured several financial advisers for a lifetime of achievement. CLCRF chairman, Geoff Cattach, was amongst those who were honoured.

For over 50 years, Geoff has represented AMP and served in and around the Harvey community as head of Harvey Financial Services. Geoff takes pride in the fact that his first client from 1965 is still with him.

This is not the first time that Geoff has been honoured for his dedication and service to the community. In 2009, Geoff was made a member of the General Division for the Order of Australia for service to the community, particularly through the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation. In 2014, Geoff was a finalist for the WA Senior Australian of the Year.

Geoff holds to core beliefs that have served him well for over 50 years. “I have always treated people with integrity. My attitude has always been: if you never tell a lie then you don’t need a good memory; treat everyone with morality and you will never be far wrong; empathy is most important as it is about your client’s life and their dependents.”

Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation’s (Inc.) Board and members congratulate Geoff Cattach for his outstanding achievement and thank him for the incredible contribution that he has made to the Foundation, the community and Financial Planning.

Local Matters: Burgers that count!

Thanks to ‘Local Matters’ through burger restaurant, Grill’d at Brookfield Place, Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) received $600, made up of $300 each from two stores, in December.

Local Matters is a community donation program started by Grill’d. Each month, each of their restaurants supports three local community groups and donates $500 back into their local community. Each local community group receives a jar at the store. Customers are given a token that they can put into one out of three jars of their choice.

At the end of each month, the community groups receive $500 which is split between the three. The group with the highest number of tokens receives $300, and the other two groups receive $100 each.

A big thank you to Grill’d, Brookfield Place, for your delicious burgers and for helping to give towards child cancer research. Every dollar counts and we are very grateful for the support!

$3,000 for NUT Carcinoma Research Manuscript

$3,000 in additional funding from the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF) was provided for publication of Dr Alex Beesley’s research manuscript into NUT Carcinoma. Originally, CLCRF provided $12,000 in funding for manuscript costs. Now a further $3,000 has been granted to Dr Beesley to enable the completion of his manuscript for publication.

Dr Alex Beesley, Honorary Research Fellow at the Telethon Kids Institute, together with Dr Anja Stirnweiss conducted a landmark study to study key features of one of the most hostile cancers, NUT Carcinoma. The study looked into the genetics behind NUT Carcinoma. NUT Carcinoma is a highly aggressive cancer and research into better therapies for patients of the cancer is desperately needed.

In the study, researchers have used a unique panel of NUT carcinoma samples to look for drugs that are more effective at fighting these tumours. In addition, they have analysed the genetic code of these samples, the first time that this has been done comprehensively for this disease.

The findings, recently published in the prestigious journal Oncotarget, provide a blueprint of what goes wrong in these cancer cells and the types of drugs that might be best for treatment in the future. Dr Beesley’s research provides hope for finding better therapies for children who suffer from NUT Carcinoma.

The CLCRF is dedicated to funding research that will better the lives of children who suffer from this terrible disease and is glad to help Dr Alex Beesley in his key research.

Book Sale for Child Cancer Research

Alison was inspired by the story of Finlay Higgs and his family. Four-year-old Finlay has been battling Hepatoblastoma, a rare form of liver cancer, since the age of two. When she heard about Finlay and his story, she was filled with compassion for the Higgs family as her own mother had come through a fight with cancer.

Inspired with her mother’s journey, Alison has been hosting a private afternoon tea and book sale at her home for family and friends aimed at raising money for cancer research for the previous three years. For 2017, she decided to raise funds through the book sale to go towards the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF).

“I was inspired by the Higgs family, who drew my awareness to the lack of funding for paediatric cancer research,” explained Alison.

Alison’s generous family and friends donated books and made food for the event on 4 November.

“Every year I have met new people, who have shared their own stories of how cancer has touched their life, and that has been the driving force to continue – the hope that every dollar will make a difference and to acknowledge and support people affected by cancer,” she said.

The book sale was very successful and nearly $900 was raised for the CLCRF!

Thank you Alison, your friends and family for your generous effort and donation to the CLCRF! We are very touched by your love and compassion for children and families bravely fighting cancer. The money raised will go towards much-needed child cancer research.

Wellard Campdraft 2017

The 10th annual Wellard Campdraft held over three days starting on 24 November in Pinjarra, featured highly bred and trained horses and their skilled riders running at their best in manoeuvring cattle around the course. The event was held at the McLarty family’s Blythewood farming property in Pinjarra with funds raised going to the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF).

The unique sport of campdrafting is a family affair, and most competitors take time out of their busy lives to have fun and participate in the three-day festival of events. This year’s Campdraft had two prestigious Open events producing outstanding winners. An evening barbeque on Saturday night gave those involved an opportunity to let their hair down and socialise.

Wellard Limited Executive Director of Operations, Fred Troncone, said the livestock exporter was proud of its commitment to such a successful event.

“Being involved with the Wellard Star of the West Camp Draft over the years is a fantastic experience. To see the dedication of the riders and their horses and also the local community to come together to put the event on is amazing – thanks to everyone involved, particularly the McLarty Family, Boar Swamp Committee and Wellard,” said Andrea Alexander, Executive Officer of CLCRF.

Congratulations to the event organisers, winners and competitors of the Wellard Campdraft. We value your contribution to child cancer research through this outstanding annual event.

Icky Sticky Bears

Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF) helped Icky Sticky Bears look for new homes in 1997.

Icky Sticky Bears were adorable teddy bears caught indulging in a pot of honey. Honey covered their faces and bodies as they were caught red-handed with their paws in the honey pot! The CLCRF were urging supporters to adopt these lovable teddy bears at the cost of $10 each, while also raising funds for the Foundation.

The bears were hugely popular and are a reminder of the fun and unique ways that the CLCRF have raised money for child cancer research. The Foundation is always coming up with exciting new ways of raising money for research into cancer. If you have a great new idea for raising money, please let us know!

CLCRF wins FIA Award for Fundraising Team of the Year

On Thursday 7 December at the Resident Bar in Nedlands, Fundraising Institute of Australia celebrated their End of Year Awards Night. It was an opportunity to celebrate the successes of the year and highlight achievements of organisations within the WA fundraising sector.

Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF) were incredibly excited and proud to be awarded the inaugural FIA WA Award for Fundraising Team of the Year on the night.

“The team at CLCRF are incredibly excited to win this! What a fabulous way to start 2018,” said Andrea Alexander, Executive Officer of CLCRF.

The CLCRF are now in the running for the National FIA Award which will be announced in March 2018 at the FIA National Conference held in Sydney.

Annual General Meeting 2017

On the evening of Monday 4 December, at the Telethon Kids Institute in Subiaco, Foundation members and invited guests of the Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) (CLCRF) met for the 24th Annual General Meeting of the Foundation.

Geoff Cattach, Chairman, and Andrea Alexander, Executive Officer, gave their respective reports on Foundation activities during 2016/17. The 2017 Annual Report, with Audited Financial Statement, was also distributed to attendees.

The highlight of the evening was Professor Ursula Kees being awarded Honorary Life Membership of the Foundation upon her retirement.

“This award was in recognition of Professor Kees’ wonderful contribution to childhood cancer research over 30 years,” Andrea Alexander explained.

The Annual General Meeting was followed by the customary Christmas Cocktail Party and gave those present a chance to farewell Professor Ursula Kees and thank her for her years of dedication.

Read the online version of the 2017 CLCRF Annual Report.

Camping Out Under the Stars for Child Cancer Research

The Friends of Finlay Camp Out was held last Saturday 25 November. A fantastic experience for the whole family, this fun-filled event saw 150 people camp out under the stars for a good cause.

The guest of honour, our little fair-haired hero, Finlay Higgs, was absolutely beaming with excitement to camp out with his family, friends and the community that registered to support him.

The Camp Out kicked off at 3pm with the campers setting up their tents. Footy drills and cricket playing with the Perth Demons kicked off around 4pm and children learned how to play footy from the finest. Kids had a blast with face painting, bubble-blowing, sack races, obstacle courses and a hugely popular bouncy castle which kept the children thoroughly entertained for hours.

A barbecue dinner was served and everyone kicked back to listen to musicians Sally Jane and Double Shots who performed beautiful music to listen and sing-a-long to. Campers appreciated the fun and chilled atmosphere that the musicians created and everyone relaxed into the evening spent coming together to support an important cause. The main lights out at 10pm but you could still hear the excited nattering of some as they fell asleep.

On Sunday morning, families awoke to continue the camping experience, kids played on the bounce castle and giant snakes and ladders game whilst their parents sat back with a coffee before starting to pack up their tents to head home. Everyone was chirpy despite an early start to the day and enjoyed the chance the turn off the technology and camp together as a family.

It was a fantastic Camp Out and Children’s Leukaemia & Cancer Research Foundation (Inc.) want to thank the Higgs Family, everyone who camped out and/or bought sleeping bags, all of the amazing volunteers and event organisers who worked so hard to make the Camp Out a success.

We especially would like to thank the amazing sponsors: Lotterywest, Absolute Edge Media, West Coast Eagles, Perth Demons Football Club, Edith Cowan University and EverSharp Financial Services for their wonderful support of the Camp Out.