Golden Casket community program

Golden Casket is well-known for giving away millions of dollars in prize money each year, however many people may not realise that it has also provided a vital source of funding for the Queensland community for close to 90 years.

$3.5 million in community donations

$3.5 million will be given back to the community in donations from unclaimed prize money and general profits. These donations include a $1,166,667 donation to the Starlight Foundation, a $1,166,667 donation to the Mater Foundation and a $1,166,667 donation to the Royal Children's Hospital Foundation. These donations form part of a $10 million commitment to three charities over three years, from the sale of Golden Casket to Tattersalls in 2007.

The events around the donation of these amounts are the Gold Lotto Superdraw dedicated to the Starlight Children's Foundation, Starlight Day, the Mater Little Miracles Easter Appeal, Mothers Day, and the Royal Children's Hospital Foundation B105 Appeal.

$1.5 million in children's health donations

Right from day one, Golden Casket funds helped the community. After initially raising money for World War One diggers and their dependents, the focus moved to health. Monies raised by Golden Casket funded the building of the original Brisbane Women's Hospital and Brisbane General Hospital and Golden Casket funds are also said to have made the free public hospital service possible in Queensland.

Today this legacy continues. Each year since 1992, Golden Casket has made an annual $1.5 million donation shared equally by the Royal Children’s Hospital Foundation, the Mater Children’s Hospital and Queensland Health to fund numerous child health care projects across the State.

Queensland police child abduction alert

Golden Casket has joined forces with the Queensland Police Service supporting the introduction of Australia's first Child Abduction Alert system. The system, which will enable media broadcasts of details relating to child abductions – has now been rolled out state-wide. In assisting Queensland Police with this system, Golden Casket and our extensive agency network may provide valuable assistance in deterring and capturing abductors and returning children as soon as possible.

Gambling community benefit fund

The Queensland Government established the Gambling Community Benefit Fund in 1994 to provide funding to community groups in Queensland. One-off grants of up to $30,000 are allocated to approved non-profit organisations to help them provide community services or activities that benefit the community. Applicant organisations must be Queensland-based and the project for which a grant is sought must provide demonstrable benefits to Queensland.

events

Golden Casket Funds 4 Starlight Wishes - Starlight Day 2012

On Wednesday 2nd May staff from Golden Casket attended a presentation at the Starlight Express Room at The Mater Children’s Hospital in Brisbane. The presentation was held to celebrate Starlight Day and the funding of four Starlight Wishes by Golden Casket.

The Starlight Children’s Foundation aims to transform the lives of seriously ill and hospitalised children, young people and their families and relies on the generosity of the community to support this year’s Starlight Day – Friday 4th May.

This year Starlight needs to raise $2 million with 5,000 volunteers collecting and selling merchandise in shopping centres, central business districts and railway stations from Thursday 03 May to Sunday 06 May. Merchandise on offer this year includes flashing Starlight wands, keyrings, stress stars, star pins, shopper bags and pens, all priced at $5 each!

Funds raised this Starlight Day will guarantee Hospital Programs such as Captain Starlight, Starlight TV, Livewire and the Starlight Express Room can be maintained in all major paediatric hospitals around the country.

Starlight’s programs are integral to the total care of seriously ill children and young people. While the health professionals focus on treating the illness, Starlight is there to lift the spirits of the child – giving them the opportunity to laugh & play & be a child again.

Starlight CEO Louise Baxter says, “The sad reality is that every minute of every day a child is admitted to hospital in Australia and we depend on the generosity of all our supporters and donors to reach out to every single one of these children.”

“While Starlight programs deliver an immediate impact, they also support the longer term wellbeing and resilience of the child and the family by ensuring a sense of self is maintained and the experience of hospitalisation and treatment is more positive.”

You can support Starlight Day 2012 online at www.starlightday.org.au or by phone on
1300 727 827.

Golden Casket Foundation recipients commemorated

On 7 March 2007, the recipients of the last round of Golden Casket Foundation grants were presented with commemorative plaques at a ceremony at the Botanical Gardens. Amongst them was Dr Gary Leong from the Mater Children's Hospitals (pictured with Bill Thorburn).

Dr Leong is looking forward to commencing a pilot program called Koala. This is a child obesity clinical research program to help prevent and treat childhood obesity. Golden Casket wishes all the grant recipients well for the coming projects.

partners

Queensland Health's Child and Youth Health Unit

The Queensland Health Personal Health Record (PHR), proudly sponsored by Golden Casket, is a parent held resource for recording growth, developmental and health assessments, and vaccinations, which is provided free of charge to all families of newborn infants born in Queensland public and private facilities.

The child and youth fact sheets (some are included as an inserted booklet into the PHR) are available for download.

The Royal Children's Hospital Foundation

Paediatric research is the key to a brighter future for sick and injured children across Queensland. Golden Casket's grant funding to the Royal Children's Hospital Foundation helps drive faster diagnoses, identify rapid healing methods and better treatments for childhood illnesses.

Mater Children's Hospital

Mater Children's Hospital leads the way in paediatric healthcare and is a major tertiary referral centre, caring for children throughout Queensland and northern New South Wales. Each year more than 120,000 children are seen in the specialist clinics where children receive a full range of specialist care.

Golden Casket's funding helps these multi-disciplinary clinics provide expert care and specialty services in general paediatrics, sleep studies, respiratory medicine, child development and endocrinology.

Starlight Children's Foundation

The Starlight Children's Foundation do so much to help seriously ill children and their families cope in stressful times. Their programs make a meaningful difference to people's lives when they need it most.

For every entry sold into the Gold Lotto $20 Million Superdraw on March 28, 2009, Golden Casket donated 50c to the Starlight Children's Foundation, totalling $563,665 from profits. The donation will go towards helping the Starlight Children's Foundation brighten the lives of seriously ill children.