While the blockbuster fundraising pushes get a lot of attention, numerous smaller contributions throughout the year help keep the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute ticking along.
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This week, a $1500 donation from the No. 23 Masonic Social Committee helped replace a fridge and freezer in the Ballarat lab, which will help store antibody and tissue samples as part of the institute's world-class research.
"When the No. 23 Masonic Social Committee heard that a fridge and freezer needed replacing in the laboratory, they were only too pleased to provide the $1500 required," a media statement said.
"The committee has also previously supported the institute's research efforts with a $3000 donation in 2017."
The 163-year-old lodge, still based in Warrenheip Street, Buninyong, usually runs a fruit sale each year to raise money for community groups, with more than $60,000 distributed since 1999.
A FECRI spokesperson said the lodge "came to the rescue" with the fridge, which needed an upgrade - members of the lodge committee toured the lab this week to see the institute's work.
The institute raised more than $230,000 through its Cycle Classic fundraising event in March.
"That was better than we could have possibly imagined coming off the back of 2020," the spokesperson said.
"There's four publications in the pipeline for a variety of research projects, and we're working on more fundraisers for later in the year."
The vision for a cancer research laboratory in Ballarat came from a remarkable teenager, Fiona Elsey, who had a rare form of cancer called Ewing's sarcoma.
Today, the Fiona Elsey Cancer Research Institute, led by Professor George Kannourakis, is making a world- class contribution to cancer research, with recent recognition for achievements into targets for ovarian cancer and histiocytic disorders.
The institute still welcomes tissue donations and volunteers, as well as monetary donations, to help support its research - visit FECRI's website to find out more.
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