By Eleanor Wilson
A sea of yellow blanketed the reception room at Berwick’s Woodlands Park Retirement Village on Thursday 19 May, as 170 residents, family and friends gathered to put their spin on Cancer Council’s Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea.
Platters of sandwiches, scones with jam and cream, party pies and sausage rolls and homemade passionfruit sponge cake filled the round tables throughout the room as residents chattered and sipped tea.
Monika Whitehead from the oncology team at St John of God Berwick Hospital said the morning tea was a wonderful celebration.
“I think it’s really special, we’re a local hospital here and our patients kind of reap the rewards of all the support the Cancer Council can offer,” she said.
“I know especially over the last two years how important that support has been for patients.”
Aside from feasting on finger food, several brave cancer sufferers shared their stories with the group.
“I know what cancer is like. I’m going through it,” said Hugh Moore.
“Mine started with kidney cancer in both kidneys. I’ve had one and a quarter kidneys removed, my prostate removed and the present battle is with lung cancer.”
Thankfully, Mr Moore is in remission, but he spoke of the importance of cancer research and getting checked.
“To all the men out there – don’t be afraid to go and get checked. You can live with it.
The retirement community got in the fundraising spirit – with raffles, auctions and donations combining to reach an incredible total of $8019.75 raised for the Cancer Council – over two and a half times the amount the village raised in the 2020 event.
The wonder woman behind the event was resident Colleen Astbury, who has spent the last few months preparing for the event.
“We did really, really well. Everything went so smoothly,” she said.
Last year, snap Covid restrictions meant the event at Woodlands Park was cancelled the night before it was due to occur.
The event suffered the same fate in 2020, meaning Mrs Astbury had good reason to be apprehensive about this year’s morning tea running smoothly.
“I was so scared something would happen like last year, but it all went great.”
Throughout May and June this year, over 19,000 morning tea fundraising events will take place across the country to raise money for cancer research, support and prevention.
Every day around 95 people are diagnosed with cancer in Victoria.
