DONATION DELIGHT: Cottage by the Sea smashes annual fundraiser goal

HUNDREDS more children are set to benefit from Cottage by the Sea programs after the organisation celebrated a record-breaking day of donations this week.

The Queenscliff charity collected $239,410 from its annual Giving Day during a 24-hour drive that started Tuesday morning, smashing its original target by almost $100,000.

The money will allow the enterprise to expand its existing suite of programs that support underprivileged children from across regional Victoria.

Cottage by the Sea set up a makeshift call centre for volunteers to accept donations and ask for contributions from supportive residents and businesses.

Charity chief executive officer Adam Wake thanked the community for its generosity, which he said was vital to ensuring the ongoing success of the enterprise.

“During 133 years of operation, we’ve been wholly dependent on events and fundraisers like this over that period of time.

“We’ve got incredible support from the community, organisations and companies that support us on days like this. The cottage wouldn’t exist without these sort of events.

“So thanks to everybody that can jumped board and we’ll carry on working with the children and help more.”

The donations smashed the day’s original fundraising target of $150,000 set before the day, which Mr Wake said would have paid for hundreds more children to access the cottage’s services.

“We’ve set a target that if we could fund 10 more programs for 10 groups of children, that would be phenomenal from today,” Mr Wake said on Tuesday.

Ward Ambler Foundation, Ducas-Paul Foundation, Bull and Bears Golf Group, Grangers Foundation, Shine On Foundation, APCO Foundation, and anonymous donors were the day’s partners who combined to match donations received this week.

Cottage by the Sea offers school camps and respite holidays for families and welfare agencies at its Flinders Street base, providing accommodation, healthy meals and development activities for groups that aim to provide long-lasting benefits to children and families.

The camps can be transformative experiences for Victoria children, some of whom are recovering from disasters such as bushfires and floods, have never been to a beach and do not regularly have access to adequate food.

The cottage hosts more than 1,000 children each year at its range of mentoring, weekly outdoor and social connection programs, as well as more than 150 children, parents and families through its Family Respite Program.

The charity accepts donations year-round as either one-off contributions or as recurring donations at its website cottagebythesea.com.au/donate