THE Boggabri Kangaroos Rugby League team presented six-year-old Jayda Hannaford with her very own jersey before kicking off in an all important fund-raiser on Saturday.
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One thing the Boggabri community is well-known for is raising huge amounts of money for charity, and they have done it again, this time donating in excess of $22,000 to the Hannaford family, to subsidise medical costs for young Jayda.
The Boggabri rugby league team took the idea of raising funds for Jayda and ran with it, using their match against Manilla on the weekend as the basis for the event.
They played Manilla Tigers at Jubilee Oval and wore purple jerseys, the colour of MPS, which were auctioned that night to raise funds for the cause.
The league team had the opportunity to meet Jayda and presented her with her jersey before she was wheeled onto the field by her father Craig before the team ran on for the game.
The roos had a lot to live up to on the weekend and won their home game 24-12 for Jayda.
The men weren’t the only ones to win on Saturday, the girls league tag team played Narrabri at the event, with Boggabri taking home their first win, a landslide victory 34-0.
The fund-raiser went well into the night at the Boggabri Bowling Club, with more than 35 raffle prizes donated by individuals and local businesses and 27 auction items sold on the night.
The auction included a pair of football boots signed by Jarryd Hayne, which made $550 on their own.
Roo’s captain Mitchell Campbell decided to have his head shaved on the night initially for $200, but with the Boggabri support behind him, it quickly turned into $560.
Jayda was diagnosed with Mucopolysaccharide type 3 (MPS) at four-months-old – a rare inherited disorder, with no known cure.
Her mobility, speech, bones and joints are affected by MPS, and she is more susceptible to sickness.
Jayda’s parents Anna and Craig said she has sadly regressed after initially learning to walk and talk.
They were extremely humbled and overwhelmed by the support of the Gunnedah and Boggabri communities over the weekend.
“The day was incredible,” Anna said.
“This donation will make a huge difference to us, we can finally install a wheelchair accessible ramp at our home, which means no longer having to carry Jayda and her chair inside.
“There were large donations by people neither Craig nor I knew personally and yet they still are happy to donate.
“We were so overwhelmed at people’s generosity.
“Other than the unbelievable donation, it was just amazing to see we have so much support, no amount of money can cure Jayda, but seeing how many people are around us who care is wonderful and so comforting.
“We thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for supporting the day by buying raffle tickets, making donations or attending the event.
“This will make day-to-day life so much easier.
“A big thank you to Col (Mad Dog) Gillham, David and Anthea Harris, Anthony Boyce, the Boggabri League Club, the bowling club and all the helpers.”
Organisers, David Harris and his wife Anthea and friends of the Hannafords, said the charity day was a huge success.
“The support from the Gunnedah and Boggabri communities was overwhelming, a demonstration of such generosity and support left us speechless,” they said.
“A special thanks go to the Boggabri Rugby League club, committee members, Mad Dog Gillham and Anthony Boyce, the day simply wouldn’t have been as successful as it was without their support.
“Hopefully we have contributed to making life in the Hannaford house a little easier.”
Donations are still flooding in and at last count the fund-raising team had tallied $22,500.
