AFTER 10 years of raising funds while displaying classic and historic cars, Mallee Cruisers will host a three-day fundraiser this October that they hope will grow each year.
The car club has raised more than $70,000 in its decade-long existence, hosting and participating in a number of events that raise awareness and funds for local mental health causes.
This year the club is looking to go even bigger in its fundraising efforts with a weekend extravaganza full of classic car fun titled RUSH (are you okay Swan Hill).
The event will bring car lovers to town over October 18, 19 and 20 to share their appreciation for cars while supporting a great cause by getting involved.
Club president Tim Purtill said the club had “been slowly announcing some of the cars on our Facebook page, just to build everyone’s excitement”.
“We’ll be getting in some really high-end cars from all over the country, some of which have taken out big awards across the major cities,” Mr Purtill said.
“The committee and I have been working to get this off the ground for about two years now, and we’d love for the community to help make it a big event.
“We’d love to provide something that will get some of the farmers who are on tractors 12 hours a day to come along and see that there is support out there.
“It will also be a great day for families and children – there will be a few other things happening in town that weekend so it looks like it will be a big one.
“What we need from Swan Hill is for everyone to get behind the event.
“They can enjoy a full three days for just $50.
“Or if they can’t do that, they can buy a raffle ticket or donate just $10 or as much as they’d like to a great cause.”
The weekend will kick off with a meet-and-greet and registration on Friday, which will be followed by a Cruise for Awareness through the local region.
Attendees and entrants will then spend an afternoon at the Pioneer Settlement, where a number of feature cars will be on display.
On the Sunday, Riverside Park will transform into the place to be to take in classic and custom cars as a show-and -shine fills the park with cars and motorbikes.
Mr Purtill said that when Mallee Cruisers held their first Cruise for Awareness, “Swan Hill was experiencing a lot of issues around mental health”.
“Some of our club members had lost some really close family and friends to suicide so decided to organise a Cruise for Awareness to raise money for local mental health causes,” he said.
“Initially we went to a local school and they weren’t able to accept it from us – I think they didn’t want to deal with the stigma around it.
“We then spoke to a few of the wellbeing staff at schools and were told a lot of the time the staff were donating their own money towards things like doctors’ visits.
“We thought we might be able to raise a couple of grand from the cruise but by the end of it we were handing over close to $19,000.
“The money donated goes straight back into the community, helping those who need a bit of support with mental health.”
Mallee Cruisers have received Swan Hill Rural City Council’s award for Community Event of the Year twice for events held last year and in 2016.
Find more information and early-bird tickets at https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1244564
