Combined Forces Produce Record Results

Two Quota clubs in New Zealand work in communities served by one regional hospital, so the clubs joined
forces on a project to provide infant hearing screening equipment there. And the combined effort produced
results in record time.

The Quota clubs of Opotiki and Whakatane expected fund raising for the pricey Otoacoustic Emissions Machine (OAE) to take a couple of years. But when the two clubs put their heads together, they found themselves with enough money in only eight months.

One successful joint fundraiser was A Whale of a Swim, an 11-kilometer off-shore swim from Whale Island to Whakatane Heads in the Eastern Bay of Plenty. Swimmers were sponsored in their efforts while having a great time exercising—a double bonus!

The mobile OAE was purchased for N.Z.$16,000. Additional funds provided a printer for the machine as well as training and salary reserves for a nurse to use it. The clubs continue to work together to provide funds for machine maintainance.

"Both clubs take pride in what we've achieved," adds Opotiki member Kinsa Hays, who co-organized the project with Whakatane's Betty Berghan.

For more information on Quota's hearing screening program, please send your request, including your address, to laura@quota.org.