The team will participate in Fight MND’s Big Freeze 10 to raise money and awareness for motor neurone disease (MND) research.
The event will take place on Saturday, June 8, at 11am. There will be a barbecue all day with donation tins, and members of Coles Echuca will get dunked in ice pools to raise money and support MND research.
MND refers to a group of diseases affecting motor neurons, the nerves that control muscle movements.
In MND, these neurons degenerate and die, leading to progressively weaker muscles.
Fight MND was established a decade ago by former Essendon Football Club player and Melbourne Football Club coach Neale Daniher, who was diagnosed with the disease in 2013.
Since then, Fight MND has spearheaded the pursuit of a cure for MND, holding various fundraisers and initiatives, including the ‘Big Freeze’ held at the MCG when Collingwood and Melbourne play on the long weekend of King’s Birthday.
Not only is it a high-profile event in Melbourne, Fight MND urges communities around Australia to get involved.
That is where Coles Echuca, specifically Rhonda Pagram, come in.
Ms Pagram has been an MND research fundraising champion since her husband, Kevin, passed away from the disease in June 2019.
She has become an official Fight MND ambassador and is again advocating for MND research and funding through her Big Freeze 10 partnering with her workplace, Echuca Coles.
Ms Pagram is looking forward to the event and highlighted her motivation and passion behind the cause.
“I am very passionate about finding treatments and an eventual cure, so if I can get the message out there and create awareness about the disease, then I’ll be happy,” she said.
“I am very excited about the event because I am retiring from Coles in June, two weeks after the dunk, so I wanted to do something special.
“I’ve had a lot to do with the head office for Fight MND. They made me an ambassador for the foundation, so I want to go out with a bang.
“It’s great because everyone is behind it, so that makes me feel really good; it has taken off and had a lot of support.”
Coles partners with Fight MND, selling ‘Big Freeze’ beanies with proceeds going to the foundation.
Coles Echuca is currently the leader in selling the most ‘Big Freeze’ beanies in the country, with $18,000 worth sold.
Ms Pagram and her team of volunteers and supporters also raise money individually and as a team.
She wanted to thank the Echuca-Moama community for its continued support of fundraisers, not just for MND, but also for its generous spirit.
“So far, I have raised nearly $1000 by myself, and together as a group, we have raised nearly $2000, with a $3000 goal that we will hopefully reach,” she said.
“Events like these spread important information, and there’s a lot of people fighting MND now, and there are quite a few in Echuca.
“It’s about raising awareness, and the Echuca community is really generous; we have a lot of fundraisers for different causes here, but they always come and are happy to give.”
If you would like to support Coles Echuca’s fundraising efforts, visit the link:
https://support.fightmnd.org.au/fundraisers/ColesEchucaicedunkchallenge
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