Bay of Plenty District Cancer Centre

May I begin by greeting everyone in the languages of the realm of New Zealand - English, Maori, Cook Island Maori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language .

Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni - and as it is morning [sign].

May I specifically greet you: Mrs Nell Dawson, Chair of the Bay Health Foundation and your fellow trustees; Michael Frohlich, the founding chair of the Bay Health Foundation; Mrs Debbie Short, member of the Bay of Plenty District Health Board representing the chair Mrs Mary Hackett; Your Worship Stuart Crosby,  the Mayor of Tauranga, Your Worship Graeme Weld, the Mayor of the Western Bay of Plenty; members of Parliament, Rt Hon Winston Peters; Hon Mita Ririnui; Hon Tony Ryall and Bob Clarkson; distinguished guests otherwise, ladies and gentlemen.

Thank you for inviting me and my wife Susan to be with you today for the opening of the Bay Health Foundation Cancer Centre.

I have been asked to unveil a plaque to officially open the Centre, but before I do I would like to speak briefly about this project.

That we are all here today is testament to the huge strength of the spirit of community in the Western Bay of Plenty.

I am told that the community here has raised more than $2.2 million for this centre in the past four years.

This is a spectacular achievement, and I have been amazed by the huge array of fundraising projects that have been held by every sector of the community here.  

Almost every group - from kindergartens and schools to sports clubs and service groups - have staged their own events for Project Hope.

Many cafes and shops have donated a percentage of their profits for a month - some of them as much as ten per cent.

I am told that when a section of land in Bethlehem was donated, the initial plan was to auction it off. But then the tradesmen of the area decided they would build a house - and everything that was needed, from the timber to the curtains, was donated so that it was a very fine house that was finally sold.

The local newspaper, the Bay of Plenty Times, swung in behind Project Hope - to such an extent that it won the APN Award for Campaigning Newspaper of the Year in 2006 and also won a placing in the Qantas Media Awards for best editorial project.

Winning these accolades from within its own industry must have been most gratifying for the newspaper. But its greater achievement was to win the heart of the community.

It did this by focussing on a man who was fighting a battle with cancer.

That man was Len Gilbert - who shared the last year of his life with the community through a weekly newspaper journal.

I would like to pay tribute to Mr Gilbert's family, who are here today, for their openness and generosity of spirit in sharing such a sad time in their family for the benefit of whole community.

Mr Gilbert became the face of Project Hope - and I am told that he lived long enough to know that about half of the money required to build the centre had been raised.

This community has proved the truth of the Maori saying about working together:

Kaua e rangi-rua-tia

Te he o te hoe

E kore to ta-tou

Waka e u ki uta

The literal translation says that in a waka, we must lift the paddles in unison or we will not reach the shore.

But the message behind it is about working together as a community to make things happen.

The Bay of Plenty has proved that it can and will work together as a community - with a great deal of ingenuity as well as energy.

The result is this wonderful new cancer centre that will be of huge benefit to the people of this area. 

It provides clinical facilities - so that people will be saved journeys to Hamilton for treatment.

It brings together all the community agencies that work with cancer patients.

And it provides a resource that everyone has access to - so that when someone is diagnosed with cancer, they and their family can come here and find all the information they need.

I would like to end by paying a special tribute to the man who started the ball rolling for this centre - Michael Frohlich, the founding chairman of the Bay Health Foundation.

Michael is the man behind a number of initiatives that have brought great benefit to people in this country - including the Water Safety Council and the Life Flight helicopter rescue in Wellington.

I had the pleasure of meeting him on a very wet day in Auckland earlier this year - when he came to Government House to be made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Years Honours.

Congratulations Michael, and to all those who have had a hand in the building of this centre - which, I hear, is already being very well used.

On that note, I would like to wish you all good health and fortitude in your endeavours in New Zealand's first language, Maori:  No reira, tena koutou, tena koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tena koutou katoa.