Allan Hughes took up the call to arms in the beginning, while this year, Mick Sanderson has teamed up with the Seymour district CFA brigades to raise funds for the Royal Children’s Hospital.
Mr Sanderson said they would be collecting funds at the fire station and invited everyone to join in helping the community.
Funds raised at the Good Friday Appeal will go to the Royal Children’s Hospital and be distributed to regional hospitals, including Goulburn Valley Health.
Besides the traditional door-knocking the brigades will do on Good Friday, Seymour’s Good Friday Appeal team has more plans to raise funds.
Mr Sanderson has organised an Easter raffle, which will be drawn at 7.30pm on Thursday. Tickets can be purchased at The Prince Hotel in Emily St, Seymour.
Prizes include an RCH hamper filled with treats and goodies, a Neil Beer service voucher, Body Tech — Cut n Polish, two Seymour Toyota vouchers and a Taurus Meats voucher.
With the Seymour brigade celebrating its 70th year of taking part in the Good Friday Appeal, other CFA brigades like Tallarook, Hilldene and Whiteheads Creek will assist it on the day.
Mr Sanderson has been organising the Good Friday Appeal in Seymour since 2008.
Now 84, he worries that no-one will be able to take over the role when he can’t do it any more.
“The young ones don’t seem to want to get involved in volunteering,” he said.
“They’ll give you money, but they don’t want to help you raise it.”
He said the surge of cashless payments had also affected how much was collected in the cans, so they turned to using QR codes.
“What you get out of cans now, in the counters, is very little,” Mr Sanderson said.
“I started this in 2008 and it was nothing to empty those cans twice a year.
“Now, I’m lucky to empty a quarter of a can once a year.”
Despite that, he hopes brigades like the CFA and SES and local businesses can prop up the annual fundraising.
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