The RFDS, an icon of the Australian outback, deserves our support
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The RFDS (Royal Flying Doctor Service) Charity Christmas initiatives primarily support the organization through fundraising and donations.
These campaigns, often centred around the festive season, aim to raise vital funds that are used for:
- Bridging the Gap in Operational Funding: While the RFDS receives some government support, it relies heavily on community donations and fundraising to cover the costs of its essential 24/7 aeromedical and primary health services.
- Purchasing and Equipping Aircraft: This is a major capital expense. Donations help finance the purchase of new "flying intensive care units," which can cost millions of dollars each, and ensure they are fully fitted out with life-saving medical equipment.
- Buying Vital Medical Equipment: Funds are used to acquire critical equipment like defibrillators, ventilators, humidicribs for babies, and to keep medical supplies and kits fully stocked.
- Supporting Remote Primary Healthcare: The RFDS delivers essential primary, preventative, and mental health services to remote and rural communities (like dental, eye care, and mental health support), and donations help keep these vital programs running.
Specific Christmas fundraising methods often include:
- Direct Appeals: Asking the public for one-off or recurring donations to support their Christmas mission, sometimes framing the distance they fly over the Christmas period (e.g., "Fly us to the Moon & Back").
- Virtual Charity Gifts/Donations: Allowing people to purchase a "virtual gift" in a loved one's name, with the donation corresponding to a specific piece of equipment or service (e.g., funding an immunisation kit or a pilot headset).
- Selling Christmas Cards: Offering specially designed RFDS Christmas cards, where the purchase price includes a donation to the service.
At newsXpress Sunbury we are grateful, through our wonderful supplier Paper Street, to support the RFDS when you purchase Christmas Cards from us,
The RFDS is an icon of the Australian outback that provides a unique and invaluable service to the community.