Around the grounds
RAY WHITE NORTH LAKES ‘ RIPE ’ ART AUCTION FOR MANGO HILL STATE SCHOOL
BY MACLAREN SMITH
The Mango Hill State School in Brisbane hosted their annual art auction with Ray White North Lakes proudly assisting their local school for the past decade .
The sales team volunteered to make , sell and distribute fairy floss , popcorn , and snow cones , while the other half managed raffle ticket sales , with all proceeds benefiting the school .
The team coordinated raffle prizes totalling over $ 3,000 including a $ 1,000 Nintendo Switch gift pack donated by CJC Law , an electric scooter gifted by Hammerich ’ s Coffee and mystery prize donated by Ray White ’ s own Jackson Turnbull , which was another electric scooter .
To call the art auction , Ray White North Lakes supplied auctioneer David Holmes . Principal Darren Suhle was the successful bidder of an artwork piece for $ 2,000 .
" We are incredibly proud of our decade-long support of the MHSS Art Festival , and this year ' s event was a fantastic success . The school was alive with excitement , offering so many activities for students , parents and the broader community to enjoy ,” Darren said .
“ The beautiful artworks on display were just incredible - we were truly amazed by the time and effort teachers and students put into creating such a stunning exhibition . We love the art pieces we purchased , and they ' ve already become a great talking point with our customers when they visit our office .”
Ange Padgett , principal of Mango Hill State School said this year ’ s ArtFest was their best by far .
“ The ongoing partnership with Ray White North Lakes has allowed the school to grow this wonderful community event ,” Ange said .
“ We raised $ 10,000 from this year ’ s event and this money will go towards the cost of holding this event in 2025 and will also provide an injection into our arts program .”
RAY WHITE SURFERS PARADISE HOSTS ANNUAL MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY CHARITY BALL
BY MACLAREN SMITH
Ray White Surfers Paradise ( RWSP ) hosted their annual Muscular Dystrophy Charity Ball and it was as spectacular as the last . They were able to raise $ 140,000 on the night for Muscular Dystrophy research but for Andrew and Greg Bell , it meant a little bit more than that .
Andrew and Greg are extremely proud of how the RWSP Charity Ball has grown over the years and how the money raised is going to a great cause .
“ We started a charity ball 31 years ago , and we were the one and only charity ball on the Gold Coast . We are pleased that our ball is the longest running , continuous ball in the Gold Coast ' s history and it has raised over $ 4.2 million for Muscular Dystrophy ,” Andrew said .
“ The real highlight of this year is that we have reached another one of our goals , we have been able to put aside a portion of funds raised each year , to the point that we now have $ 1 million in a high interest earning account .
“ That means long past Greg and my stage of being able to host balls or other fundraising exercises , there will be a perpetual annual grant into research to try and eradicate this disease .
“ Over the past 10 years , life expectancy grew from the late teens to the late twenties , but breakthroughs in the last couple of months suggest that life expectancy can now be extended to middle age .
“ But we still haven ' t found the silver bullet to eradicate it altogether . For as long as we can , we will continue in our efforts to reach that goal .
“ In 2025 , we are putting on our innovator ' s hat , and have decided that the charity and cause will get lost among so many balls , and so we have taken a decision to morph into a whole different concept and one that we think will elevate our fundraising to a whole new level and with even greater financial reward to Muscular Dystrophy research .
“ So we are excited to continue our passion to raise the funds , but in a refreshed , new and more contemporary concept .”
Everyone is looking forward to seeing what comes next .