OPPOSITE PAGE : EVONNE GOOLAGONG WITH SCOTCH FIRST NATIONS STUDENTS AND THE PRINCIPAL , DR SCOTT MARSH .
THIS PAGE , ABOVE , LEFT : A RON MURRAY DIDGERIDOO IS AUCTIONED FOR $ 4000 . RIGHT : MIKE SIM (’ 78 ), BARBARA HOLDER , DION WHITFIELD (’ 22 ) AND EVONNE
GOOLAGONG . BELOW : PREFECTS SELLING RAFFLE TICKETS AT THE DINNER .
show fundraising progress . The Principal thanked Evonne and Roger for what their foundation is doing to encourage education for First Nations children .
‘ Tonight is about creating opportunities ,’ he said , ‘ and sacrificial giving to create those opportunities is part of Scotch ’ s DNA ’. He paid tribute to Dr Rob Smith for his key role in Scotch ’ s Indigenous Program . As Dr Marsh concluded his remarks , the big screen began to light up with early donations . The target was $ 1M in 24 hours , to be achieved by 8pm on Friday , or all donations would be refunded .
◍ Dr Janet Young ’ s introduction of Evonne Goolagong and Roger Cawley , in which Evonne ’ s former doubles partner spoke of the couple ’ s passionate belief in the Evonne Goolagong Foundation , and their staunch support of all program participants .
◍ Tim Shearer ’ s interview with Evonne and Roger , in which the guests of honour described the establishment and development of the Evonne Goolagong Foundation . Roger expressed his gratitude to Scotch for the school ’ s cooperation with the foundation , saying that the association with the school has been ‘ the best time of our lives ’.
Evonne spoke of her respected opponents , including Margaret Court , Billie-Jean King , Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova . ‘ I just loved being out there ’, she said , ‘ having a lovely day ’. She spoke of the key importance of education – ‘ ít ’ s not about the tennis : everyone has to attend school ’, which is a mantra of her foundation , and to her , ‘ Scotch is like a big family ’.
◍ Dion Whitfield ’ s eloquent thanks to Evonne and Roger , in which he expressed his gratitude to Scotch and the Evonne Goolagong Foundation for the opportunities which have been presented to him . ‘ My Scotch education has enabled me to grow , and it has encouraged me to want to serve others and to strive for excellence in all that I do . I love Scotch , and I want as many First Nations boys as possible to have the same opportunities I ’ ve enjoyed .’
◍ A very successful live auction , expertly conducted by Lachie Fraser Smith (’ 85 ) of Jellis Craig , which raised $ 20,475 . Among the
items auctioned were a Ben Shearer water colour painting , which sold for $ 7000 , a Roger Federer signed tennis ball ($ 4200 ), a Ron Murray didgeridoo ($ 4000 ), lunch at Kooyong with Evonne and Roger ($ 2500 ), and a Hawthorn Football Club signed guernsey ($ 1000 ).
◍ A raffle which raised $ 5000 .
◍ MC Tim Shearer ’ s concluding remarks , in which he thanked Evonne Goolagong and Roger Cawley , Dr Janet Young , event organisers Rebecca Mortimer , Sandra Dick and the organising committee , matched donors , and those who committed to the campaign during the evening . He especially mentioned the large cohorts of teachers and parents who supported the dinner and the fundraising after a busy school day .
Throughout the event the big screen told the story of the mounting donations total , which had reached $ 300,000 by the close of the evening . On the following day the targeted $ 1 million was achieved by 6pm – two hours ahead of the 8pm deadline . At 8pm the final total was $ 1,145,180 , described by Mike Sim as ‘ a magnificent number to achieve in so many ways ’.
He said : ‘ Not only is the number outstanding , but because of the excess and the way we offer scholarships and invest the capital , it sets up the fund to actually grow , and quite possibly achieve more than we ever hoped for .’
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