The gift of giving: Anam Cara House reaches Giving Day objective

THE Geelong community has rallied behind Anam Cara House Geelong, with the local palliative care facility accomplishing another successful Giving Day.

In total, residents and matching donors of the Anam Cara House raised $882,970 on Tuesday over a period of 12 hours, achieving the Giving Day’s fundraising goal of $750,000.

The funds raised will ensure that an additional six beds will be made available to palliative residents at the house, doubling Anam Cara House’s care capacity to 12 and its service to the Geelong region.

“We’re very, very pleased with how the community responded to this year’s Giving Day,” Anam Cara House deputy chair Rob Threlfall said.

“Our volunteers worked tirelessly to call hundreds of residents to encourage them to donate, so none of this would be possible with their help and we can now double or residences to people located in the greater Geelong region.

“The extra donations will also allow the house to increase its capacities further and add to the support we provide our guests and their families.”

As part of the Giving Day proceedings, donors and volunteers gathered at Anam Cara House to celebrate the influx of donations.

Mr Threlfall said the overall feeling in the room was one of gratitude and excitement, seeing the difference locals were making in real time.

“We’d like to thank the generosity of the community, our staff and volunteers for their efforts, and I’d like to thank all of our generous matching donors whose names are on our website.

“We look forward to continuing to provide the support through a valuable service we have on offer and as always we just encourage people to learn more about what we offer or even just visit the house itself.”

More on Anam Cara House Geelong and its services can be found at achg.org.au