Cystic Fibrosis NZ benefits from efforts of Waikato couple and Jersey community.

An online charity auction with a strong Jersey theme raised more than $20,000 for Cystic Fibrosis NZ recently.

Initiated by Josh and Kareena Sneddon of Tahau Jerseys, the auction ran on bidr® on 21 June. Featuring 46 lots with a mix of live animals and semen straws on offer, alongside sundry donated goods ranging from a day of digger hire to stays in four and five star luxury apartments, the auction attracted 79 registered buyers, with more than 120 other online followers. 

Now nearly two, Natalie Sneddon was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 10 days old following the heel prick test given to newborns. Her mother Kareena says the charity has made the family’s life easier.

“Giving back was something we really wanted to do.  

“We had some surplus calves and wanted to donate them. It started small, kept blossoming and we were overwhelmed by the support the auction eventually received. Natalie has benefited from Cystic Fibrosis NZ on several occasions, including through its Breath4CF fund, which helps fund anything to do with physical activity for those suffering the illness. We used it for a baby exerciser before she was walking, and more recently bought an indoor trampoline. With the condition it is important to be able to keep moving, which she loves to do, and which stops mucus settling in her lungs, so the fund has helped hugely with that,” she says.

Laura Huet is fundraising and marketing manager for Cystic Fibrosis NZ. She said it was wonderful to see rural people and the wider cystic fibrosis community come together online.

“These funds will make a big difference to the day to day lives of plenty of people. Exercise is one of the best ways to manage cystic fibrosis, so being able to pay for the likes of swimming lessons, or to buy a pair of running shoes, which the fund does, helps ensure the cost of exercise is never a barrier to staying active.

“Because people with cystic fibrosis are not able to meet face to face due to the risk of infection, much of our activity is online, which meant bidr® was a really awesome platform, and easy to use in this way. Running a fund-raising event in person can be challenging at the best of times, and when you have restrictions around meeting face to face it becomes even more so. Bringing people together online for the auction worked so powerfully. On the night it was incredible watching those auction lots sell so well. We were very impressed,” she says. 

General manager of bidr® Tania Smith says New Zealand’s virtual saleyard was delighted to help.

“Helping people like the Sneddon family and Cystic Fibrosis NZ is enormously rewarding, and something we are thrilled bidr® can do. In addition to operating 76 sales between mid-May and early July, bidr® has hosted several charity auctions recently, assisting a wide range of causes from search and rescue to youth organisations. We also recently ran a hybrid charity auction for Black & White Youth – Holstein Friesian New Zealand, in conjunction with their annual conference, which attracted good interest online and raised over $10,000,” she says.