Cancer Society crisis averted as volunteers save appeal

Bay of Plenty Vintage Car Club member Alistair Jones is one of a team of volunteer drivers who will help deliver daffodils for the Cancer Society New Zealand ahead of this year's Daffodil Day. Photo / George Novak

A crisis involving the New Zealand Cancer Society's major fundraiser has been averted through an upsurge of support from Tauranga drivers.

Ahead of next week's Daffodil Day campaign more than 1250 bunches of fresh flowers were pre-sold to businesses in and around Tauranga. The selling of daffodils to businesses each year is traditionally one of the Waikato/Bay of Plenty division's biggest earners and goes toward supporting cancer patients in the community.

However, a shortage of volunteer drivers meant there was no one in Tauranga who could transport the flowers to where they needed to go.

"We had no one to actually deliver them," communications manager Maria Low said.

Volunteers were needed to distribute fresh flowers to businesses in Tauranga city and suburbs, including Papamoa and Mount Maunganui, on August 25 and 26. Organisers put out an SOS asking for help, and an article about the charity's plight was published in the Bay of Plenty Times.

"By the end of the first day of it being published, more than 120 offers of help from groups and individuals wanting to help were received," Ms Low said.

"We couldn't believe it. The phone was ringing off the hook for two days."

The charity now has 42 vehicles, equating to about 30 deliveries per vehicle.

"What it shows is there's really power in the press when there's a call to action, but also just to the number of people in Tauranga who are really community minded and wanting to step forward and do something to help others. "We are so grateful."

Ms Low said they received so many offers of help, she hoped they could use the individual volunteers who missed out this year next time.

The groups which volunteered their services include the Bay of Plenty Vintage Car Club, Tauranga Taxis, Countdown supermarket managers and Civil Defence.

Bay of Plenty Emergency Management and group controller Clinton Naude said they would have two teams in two vehicles delivering flowers.

"The article struck a chord with one of our Community Resilience team members who saw it as a useful opportunity to get out into the community and help another organisation," Mr Naude said.

"A call was made for available staff to volunteer to get out and about on the day to spread some goodwill and enjoy meeting new people.

"Civil Defence relies on communities supporting each other in times of need and wants to encourage people to develop relationships and especially get to know their neighbours."

Daffodil Day

In 1991 more than 33,000 bunches of fresh daffodils were ordered by the Cancer Society for distribution. $1,200,000 was raised that year.

Daffodil Day is held this year on August 28.

All money donated in the Bay supports cancer patients in the community.

The campaign, which provides the main funding source for the Cancer Society, annually raises between $4.5 and $5 million to help drive the Society's activities.