The record $16.8 million donated this year to Telethon’s annual fundraising weekend – the charity’s most successful event to date – will mean more money in the pockets of the chosen beneficiaries, including the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research.
Telethon’s general manager Steve Mummery told WA Business News that with the annual fundraising event over for another year, the Board of Trustees will now sit down and decide how the donations will be spent.
“The money that sits on the tally-board after Telethon is exactly the amount that we’ll distribute to the charities," he said.
“Our two major beneficiaries, the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research and Princess Margaret Children’s Hospital, will get the main chunk of the money.”
Each year the Board of Trustees meets to decide which charities throughout the WA community will receive the money.
Mr Mummery said this year Telethon received 53 applications for the money that was raised over the weekend.
In previous years, the charities have used the money to upgrade or buy new equipment, or improve their services.
Big donors this year included Tim Roberts (one of four children of the late Multiplex founder John Roberts) who gave $1 million, as well as Crown Perth, Lexus Perth and Seven West Media chairman Kerry Stokes, via his private company Australian Capital Equity.
Through his charitable foundation, WA Governor Malcolm McCusker gave $1 million by pledging a dollar for every tweet containing the hashtag #telethon7.
The State Government also contributed $500,000 to Telethon on behalf of all Western Australians.
Premier Colin Barnett used the event to annouce that the State Government would contribute $1 million to the Telethon/New Children’s Hospital Fund, which would be dollar matched by Telethon.
The fund allows universities, individuals and organisations to apply for grants to carry out child and adolescent health research.
