By Esther Lauaki
Sunbury’s Light the Night event will honour an “amazing man and awesome pop” – Neville Freegard.
The 68 year-old died two years ago of blood cancer. His daughter Kris Balfour has organised the upcoming September 22 event on what would have been her dad’s 70th birthday.
“He was the best,” Ms Balfour said.
“He was an amazing man, mates with everyone, was always helping anyone and was an awesome pop to seven grandchildren – and just one granddaughter among them.
“He had this dry sense of humour, loved a joke and he was very hard working.”
Light the Night is one of the Leukaemia Foundation’s major fundraisers for blood cancer research.
Ms Balfour said last year’s inaugural Sunbury event attracted about 100 people and she hoped that twice that number would attend this year. “To be able to do something to give a little back is the least I can do,” she said. “The help that the Leukaemia Foundation gave us was invaluable.
“When dad went downhill right at the end, mum was at Townsville at the time and we didn’t have a car – they paid for the cab to get us to the hospital.
“From start to finish they were there for us. They were incredible.”
The Sunbury event, at The Village Green, will be one of a number of Light the Night events held around Victoria which will include a lantern walk to transform the darkness into a sea of glowing light. The event starts at 6pm and participants are encouraged to bring a picnic and their walking shoes.
Donate: lightthenight.org.au/events/sunbury
