Did you know.....

I've just worked this out by population figures....

We raised $70,000 in Putaruru in 1 night...

There's 3,800 people in Putaruru
that's the equivalent of the following cities having to raise this amount to match us based on their population:
$1.6 million in Hamilton (335,000)
and $24 million in Auckland 1.3 million people......

Putaruru Rocks yet again......

The Glitched Sponsors Pages from Pink.... I was so wild when we couldn't get them up on the main screen....Bex had worked all day to get the pink DNA

At last... The infamous SPONSORS SLIDE which was sssooooo important and sssooooo much hard work had been put into it by Bex during the day. We were devastated when it wouldn't "talk" to the projector on the night - a serious case of stage fright!! Sorry that we disappeared for a while - we've caught up on life just in time for Christmas - a few cheques still to come in and we're standing around $70,000 - not bad for a town of just over 3,500 population..

A MASSIVE THANK YOU EVERYONE!!

Holla - for a Think Pink Tee.....

Come on people - the Rural Party Girls need your help.... We need to get a Putaruru Think Pink Tee made from Billi Tees...

We're asking you to do the following
1 Vote for Putaruru.
2.Say what you think is the coolest thing about Putaruru.
3. Say what you think is not sooo cool.
Submit your vote - then get your friends to do the same...

How great would it be if we had a tee shirt made for PINK......

Here's the link:
http://www.billitees.co.nz/hometown_promotion.php

Go Bus Go To Pink...

For those of you that didn't see the cool GO Buses coming into town - here's how they were dressed at Hamilton for the occasion. Many thanks to the South Waikato District Council for sponsoring the buses, and thanks to go bus for the extra effort.....

Raffle Tickets....

We've just discovered that ALL of the winners of the raffle were sold tickets by our very own Natalie - maybe she should have bought my bloody lotto ticket on Saturday night!

Last Night Totally Rocked......

Hey everyone - if you came along last night, leave us a message and tell us what you thought......

A big thanks to KERRE WOODHAM who did an amazing job of being MC for absolutely NO FEE AT ALL...............

Our glitch of the night was that the laptop stopped talking to the projector, and we could NOT get the powerpoint displays up on the screen to show our list of FANTASTIC sponsors, without which, the evening couldn't go ahead - to say we were devastated was an understatement - and so I will attach the powerpoint to the blog over the next 2 days to show our sincere appreciation for the extra mile that they went to to ensure the event went ahead in as good a style as it did - (see the photo link below.......)

We're currently sat around $70,000 dollars raised on the night which is tremendous.

The $500 Dr Lewins product sold for $350.
Fiona Tunnicliffes cow sold for $500.
Ruby the doll sold for $300.
Anne Berbens Quilt sold for $1800 - with the underbidder offering $1000 to the Trust for Anne to make a quilt for them.
Lady In The Pink Dress by Heather Leonard sold for $1,000.
Clematis by Fiona Barrett - Sold for $1,300.
Warm Allison by Sandra Ogle - sold for $2,200.
Keep The Faith by Me - sold for $1,900.
Grace by Jocelyn Pratt - sold for $2,000
Sculpted Fruit Bowl by Kevin Jullian - $700
Australian Holiday by Kay Humphries Travel Managers Putaruru sold for $3,100
Garden Of Eden Package sold for $2,500.
Kitchen Appliances - sold for $7,000
The Kitchen - a collaboration of suppiers orgainised by Hopkins Joinery sold for $12,000.

Many thanks to all who supplied pieces for the auction, and those who purchased them.

Here is the link to Tirau Dans flickr:
Putaruru Think Pink

Right - I'm exhaused & off to bed! Thank you everyone...

Anne Berbens Breast Cancer Quilt & more thank yous....

Here is Annes, rather funky awesome breast cancer quilt. It has been hanging in the Information centre as part of Involve '08, and could have been sold 10 times over. She has made it lightweight and backed with pink polar fleece so that if anyone is undergoing cancer treatment, it will keep you warm & add some brightness to your day with her bling take on all things girlie, a great pressie for someone undergoing treatment.

Thank you Anne..

We also have even more thank yous......

Ivan & Elizabeth Gray of New World Tokoroa for all of the bread rolls & bread for the evening.
Judy Grey for making our waitress' skirts.
Benchmark Putaruru for the 4 burner bbq in the Garden of Eden auction.
Don McKinnon for making the cake stands - they're being booked in for other functions before we've used them!
Linzi Shaw - for her craft skills with a piping bag.
Julie Van Dam for helping too...
Putaruru Information Centre for selling over 400 of our tickets - you rock!
Norm Atkins for our lighting and FONTERRA for paying Norms wages whilst he comes to work on Think Pink.
Lynn Hawkes for your awesome cake making skills yet again......
Michael Kirk for filling the vast void and being our head chef - even with a full time job & young twins........
Woolworths Putaruru for sponsoting all of our baking product for teh cakes.
Goodman Fielders - Mount Maunganui - for the flour and muffin products
- big shout for Simone for organising it.
Fonterra once again for the strawberry milk...
Bex for helping us as usual......

Accommodation.....

- Lakeside Farm Cottage & River Trail Cottage Walk


For those of you looking for accommodation - the following is still available in Putaruru. It's still available because we pre-booked it to keep it free for Think Pink....

@Junction - This pace sleeps six and is absolutely PRIMO....Mike & Raewyn have a cute little Hometel (A home used as a motel) in the heart of Putaruru. Totally stunning interior. They also have 1 room left in their en-suite homestay. this is first class accommodation, and the club van will take you back to your accommodation.

Lakeside Cottage - Dick & Liz Johnson have this awesome cottage by Lake Arapuni - Sleeps 6 (or 8 with pull out sofa bed) and is right on the side of the Arapuni Dam part of the river trail. On Sunday 19th as part of Involve '08 there is a walk from the Dam to Jones' Landing....

River Trail Cottage - Just 1km from Lakeside Cottage - Jenny & Duane have this cosy cottage - The club van will take you home from both cottages. They are a very easy 10 minute drive into town.

In all of the above accommodation, contact the owners direct and tell them we sent you!

Also - Putaruru Arms Motel - Dave is your host here - good all round budget accommodation - give him a call as I know he was filling up quick.

See you on Saturday!

More Thank yous, Sponsors & Donations......

We have even more sponsors to add to our list......

Ambreed have donated $1000 to be used on the bands.
King Electrical - Tirau - $250 donation.
Wynn-Bowers Mason - Pink Patchwork Christmas Stocking
Roger & Mary Gainford - Their holiday home in the Romance & Relaxation Package (and it is to die for.......)
Harvey Travel Tokoroa - Tokoroa - $200 travel voucher
Steinies Barber Shop - for our raffle prize.
The South Waikato Town of Tirau for supporting us and turning PINK
Daltons - Matamata - for a $250 product voucher
Greenlea Meats - have added to our beef requirements.
McEntee Hire Cambridge - vastly reduced hirage rates.
BP Putaruru - for a $400 cheque, and filling up the Club van with petrol on the night to get the locals home....
South Waikato District Council - for their grant to pay for all of the out of town buses.
Notting Hill - for prizes and a voucher for the raffle.
Grog Shop - Putaruru for their raffle basket.
Unichem Chemists - Putaruru - for their gift basket.
Maungatautari Lodge - for their dinner voucher.
Synergy Matamata - for their spa voucher and Pure Fiji Product.
IM & JM Reid - Jean is organising the floral display in the marquee and her kind husband said that they would sponsor the flowers..
Sandra Ogle - for her painign in the auction.
Kevin Julian for his awesome sculpture in the auction
$500 DrLewins product for the auction
phew.......

Table Top Fruit Bowl to auction....

No tickets left at the information centre, and so we're bringing back the 20 from Hamilton to sell over here at the information centre as we're inundated here.... We have also had a new auction lot - big thanks to Kevin Julian for our new auction piece. This awesome table top fruit bowl is hand carved and more details to follow....

Number Of Tickets Left....

We have 19 tickets left at the Putaruru Information Centre, and 22 tickets at the Hockin Building at Waikato Hospital. We'll keep you informed of how they are selling....

Thank You To Paul Henry...

A big thank you to Paul Henry who did exactly what we expected this morning...We sent him an invite & 2 tickets to the event - we knew he wouldn't attend but sent them anyway and got free press coverage and the event talked about, and the trust mentioned....We couldn't believe that it was EXACTLY as we predicted........

Warm Allison - a new addition to the auction...

This painting has been kindly donated by local artist Sandra Ogle. Here is the artists expaination:

HERE IS WHY I NAME THE PAINTING THIS , WARM IS THE FEELING I GET LOOKING AT THIS PAINTING IT ALSO HAS NEUTRAL COLOURS WHICH IS PLEASING TO THE EYE I HAVE ALSO ADDED THE NAME ALLISON TO THIS PAINTING , ALLISON IS MY PARTNERS MOTHER WHO HAS NOW PASSED ,ALLISON TERESA CASEY PASSED AWAY 8YRS AGO SHE DIED OF LUNG CANCER
SHE WAS A VERY WARM CARING PERSON WHO CARED FOR OTHERS.

I AM HONORED TO DONATE THIS PAINTING FOR THIS CAUSE.

May thanks Sandra.

All Things Pink In Putaruru....

I've just seen our cows coming out of the milking shed with pink - yes pink tail paint in readiness for AB (or mating season)....I saw my hubbies support of think pink, and thought that I'd show you the Putaruru pink support....The clamatis is at my home an is over 2m tall......PUTARURU THINKS PINK........And by the way - RD1 in Putaruru has been pushing pink tail paint to get the local herds involved too.....

The Appliance Auction....

This is yet another awesome kitchen auction, this time for the kitchen appliances. A huge massive shout goes to Van Dyks of Putaruru and Fisher & Paykel. We can only pretend to understand the level of requests that they get for sponsorship, and in today's finacial climate & the fact that every cause is important, we are incredibly grateful to have the following appliances for the auction:

The E522BRXFDU Stainless ice and water fridge freezer - Active Smart technology has been given a new addition, an integrated water dispenser providing you with chilled filtered water and an internal ice maker for clean, crisp ice cubes on demand. With no impact on space in the freezer or refrigerator door, this is the perfect addition to the Active Smart family.

OB60SDEX1 Oven. Fisher & Paykel ovens are designed with simply perfect cooking in mind. The OB60SDEX1 has seven cooking functions for flexibility and complete control, while clean lines and flat panelling in glass and stainless steel compliment the style and elegance of any modern kitchen.

The CT560FSS cooktop - 4 Elements, Brushed Stainless Steel Fisher & Paykels ceramic cooktops provide a completely flat profile. This allows you to move pots and pans around the hob simply and quickly whilst providing extra storage space when it is not in use. High speed ribbon elements heat up quickly and maintain an even temperature for faster cooking while the stylish dark Ceran glass surface is a breeze to clean.

DD605SS DoubleEZKleen Stainless Steel Dishdrawer Dishwasher... We imagined the ideal dishwasher...and the concept of the DishDrawer was born. Years of research and refinement have created an appliance that offers a compelling blend of form and function. Each drawer is independently operated, allowing you to wash small loads as economically as large ones. DishDrawer lets you match the wash programme to the contents, so dishes are better cared for.

The WD2002 waste disposal - Fisher & Paykel's waste disposal unit is the clean, convenient answer to kitchen waste. With stainless steel grinding components and a 1/2 horse power motor these waste disposal units provide an extra fine grind, that eliminates any drain blockages.


The perfect auction to win if you're looking for new appliances (maybe to go in your brand new HOPKINS JOINERY package....)

My Painting - Keep The Faith.....

Here is my painting - "Keep The Faith" - and there's a lllloooong story to it! Underneath the greys, blacks & silvers are a whole rainbow of colours - big bright & vibrant. So no matter what the appearance, no matter what your faith, remember that things are not always as they seem, and every cloud has a silver lining.....

I painted this over the last few months, and visitors have got used to wondering what colour is next - it is pictured against a soft sage wall, and measures 30inches x 40 inches or approx. 70cm x 100cm. I don't have a price guide as I don't usually sell my work (but I know how much I'm willing to get John to pay to buy it back as I quite like it against the soft sage colour of my lounge!!!!!)

Clematis By Fiona Barrett

Clematis
Fiona Barrett
Oils 40 inches x 36 inches


May 19th 2006 was the day that my world was turned inside out, I was diagnosed with an aggressive HER 2 Breast cancer. As I lay on a hospital trolley being poked and prodded by well meaning medical staff, my thoughts immediately turned to my family and how much I loved and needed them.

They hugged away my tears, protected me from embarrassment, made me laugh and laugh and laugh, encouraged me to stop and take time to do the things that I had always left to last, painting and gardening.

These medicines of life and of course chemotherapy, radiotherapy and several operations have seen me through the hard times. Painting and gardening are now my addictions, and I have combined them to produce large floral artworks that brighten up the day.

So knackered.......

Last night saw us all involved in my 10 year old sons birthday party......All of the kids arrived and the girls sat nicely around the outside of the room whilst the boys charged straight in and systematically tried to beat the living daylights out of each other with balloons...a real eye opener!!! By the end of the night - the adults with a few helpings of wine, danced, danced and danced some more - on a concrete floor - NOT A GOOD IDEA when you have to get up early the next morning to continue painting the ribbon around town....In the UK, we had this thing in the 80's with The Gap Band called Ooops Up Side Your Head, and we thought it would be a hoot to teach the kids how to do it (click here to see a random You Tube clip) - well today, I can hardly bloody walk & I have dancing feet!!! Next week we have The Feelers in town so I'd better be right by then!

So the ribbon is complete throughout Princes Street in town - we've realised that if you want something done, ask an Ann or Annie - hehehe - with the exception of Nat, everyone was called either Ann or Annie, even the imports!!!!

BIG thank you once again to Dean Gittings who had us all lined up and ready to go by 10am - his assistance, yet again was invaluable!!

Once again Putaruru Rocks.... Richard & Sue Heslop from our local pharmacy baked us morning tea, Sid from K_Beez superette provided free soft drinks and the Bakehouse gave us free coffees and kept the kids fed for free - we were sooooo overwhelmed as we didn't expect any of that at all - so a big THANK YOU to you all....

PGG Wrightsons / AON Insurance have covered ALL of our Public Liability Insurance for Think Pink as sponsorship - Huge thanks to Heather Wood and the team at Hamilton who organised it all out of the blue for us....THANKS GUYS.....

More soon - I need to go dig out the foot spa........

The FREE Think Pink Buses...

Proudly sponsored by the South Waikato District Council - Community Development Grant.

IF YOU ARE TRAVELLING FROM OUTSIDE OF THE DISTRICT, THE SOUTH WALKATO COUNCIL HAVE VERY KINDLY APPROVED THE TRUSTS GRANT TO PROVIDE BUSES INTO THE AREA WHICH ANNE WHITE HAS BEEN WORKING TIRELESSLY WITH GO BUS IN HAMILTON FOR MONTHS.... A HUGE THANK YOU TO THE SOUTH WAIKATO DISTRICT COUNCIL FOR THIS AND TO GO BUS FOR THE FANTASTIC RATES - WE REALLY DO APPRECIATE IT!

TO BOOK ON THE BUSES, CONTACT ANNE WHITE ON:
Anne 07 8838 942
Anne - TheWhites@orcon.net.nz
Annes Mobile - 021 077 8775

HAMILTON
Chartwell
Depart 5.30pm Lyndon Court Bustop
Cars can park at Westfield Centre Carpark at ASB end of Centre on Comries Ave for free
Hospital
Depart 5.30pm Blood Donor Centre Carpark
Cars can park at Hospital Carpark max cost $7-50
Skycity
Depart 5.30am
Cars can park at Skycity from 5pm for flat rate of $10.00 (good safe place if need to leave overnight)
RETURN DEPART TIME for Hamilton buses will be 12.30am & 1am

CAMBRIDGE
Depart 6pm from Lake St Bus stop behind Info Centre
Free parking available
Return– Depart Putaruru 1am
MATAMATA
Depart 6pm from Info Centre
Free parking available at rear
Return– Depart Putaruru 1am
MORRINSVILLE
Depart 5.30pm from Info Centre opp Caltex
Free parking available
Return—Depart Putaruru 12.30am
TE AWAMUTU
Depart 5.30pm from Rose Cardens opp Info Centre
Free parking available
Return—Depart Putaruru 12.30am
TOKOROA
Depart 6pm from SWDC
Free parking available
Return– Depart Putaruru 1am

Garden Of Eden Package So Far...

Garden Of Eden Package


Tirau Earthmovers Voucher
Value $1500– for Goods & Services
Daltons Matamata Voucher
Value $250-
Mitre 10 Putaruru
Outdoor Table & Chairs - Barcelona $400
Outdoor Table Gas Heater - Stainless Steel - $190
Pink Tool Set
Bunnings Putaruru
4 Gas Burner Hooded BBQ
Greenworld Tokoroa Voucher
Value $100
Putaruru Electrical Voucher
Value $1500-
Freedom Furniture Voucher - $100


Don't forget to keep checking back to see what gets added - and if you're a company looking to sponsor anything in this section - contact us via any of the methods listed on our "Contact Us Page.."

Louise Butler's Photography Package..

A taste of things to come....Here's a little peep at some of Lou's photography, I've just got back from our "Pink" meeting so will post details of how you can big for one of her amazing shots tomorrow...The best part of it is that it's for an evening shot in daylight saving time - so no need to take time off work or school for it!!!!

cont....

Louises auction lot is a photo shoot that includes photos of family and/or individuals put onto a CD and a selection printed out and presented in an album.

Must be used within 3 months of Think Pink, and will be a week day evening as Louise is completely booked on weekends with her fantastic wedding photography. HOW GREAT WOULD THIS BE AS A CHRISTMAS PRESENT.............

Dress Code For Think Pink...

One question that we're constantly asked is "what is the dress code for Think Pink?", the answer to the question is - anything you like as long as you have some pink on - any shade of pink - but some pink....We have those in the flashest of flashest of ballgowns, cocktail dresses, jeans & pink tees, pink fancy dress of ALL kinds and so on. For the men there's everything from pink bow ties, pink shirts, pink suits, pink fancy dress - so come on, if I can get my farmer hubbie to wear a pink shirt for one night - anyone can - my 9 year old has just asked if men will wear dresses????? Hey on this night - ANYTHING GOES........

Grace - By Jocelyn Pratt

How gorgeous is this sculpture from Jocelyn? She is currently in Agrentina at a sculpting symposium, and will fly in the day before Think Pink......Grace was made especially for Think Pink and is a one off.... In a gallery, Grace would have a price tag of around $3800, and for this reason (and the sheer bloody hard work of creating Grace) the piece will have a reserve of $2000.

YOU KNOW YOUR GARDEN NEEDS IT!

More For The Auction......Lady In The Pink Dress

Many thanks to Heather Leonard of the Naked Gallery for her kind donation of The Lady In The Pink Dress - this would retail in her gallery for around $400 - how great would this be for a dancer - or even a breast cancer survivor.... Come on everyone - dig deep - all for a fantastic cause......

The Kitchen - First Installment From Hopkins Joinery....

Well, what can we say.... We first approched Hopkins Joinery with the idea of "Putting The Heart Back In The Home" by way of auctioning a kitchen earlier this year. Ron and his right hand girl Hilary were amazing (thank you guys)! They took it upon themselves to get in contact with all of their suppliers meaning that it spared us the task of getting the finer details together. The first part of the kitchen is worth a whopping $16,800 with the plumbing and electrical vouchers - this brings the toatl of this package to a whopping $18,600 and the second part will be the appliances.

So here goes.....

DO YOU NEED A KITCHEN???

ARE YOU IN THE WAIKATO???

DON'T BUY ONE! BID ON OURS AND THE ENTIRE AMOUNT PAID GOES TO THE WAIKATO BREAST CANCER TRUST!!

* Engineered Stone Slabs using ROXX (Stonex) generously donated by WENRITE HARDWARE & LAMINATE SUPPLIES
* Galaxy Sink with 1 and 1/4 bowls & tap sponsored by WENRITE HARDWARE & LAMINATE SUPPLIES worth $370
* Benchtop manufacure to the value of $1200 (using the Roxx) kindly donated by BENCHWORKS LIMITED.
* Glass Splashback offered by METRO GLASSTECH up to the value of $1000.
* Vacuum formed doors/wooden doors donated by ARBORLINE PRODUCTS LIMITED worth $1300.
* Designer handles donated by HARDWARE 2000 to the value of $430.
* Curved glass rangehood with a 5 year garantee from PARMCO - value of $800.
* Soft closing drawer runners, corner carousel and all hardware for the kitchen kindly donated by HETTICH INTERNATIONAL, value with cabinetry.
* Cabinetry panels offered at hugely discounted rates by BAY PANEL & HARDWARE SUPPLIES LIMITED in conjunction with PRIME PANELS.
* All cabinetry to be manufactured by HOPKINS JOINERY - cabinetry will be based on the clients design and could include an appliance garage, oven tower, double sink cabinet, 4 drawer cutlery drawers, big 3 drawer cabinet for pots & crockery, a cabinet to hols a dishwasher, upper wall cupboards, corner pantry, cupboard above the fridge.

Also - Laser Electrical - Putaruru - Electrical voucher to the value of $1500
Plumb Co - A Plumbing voucher to the value of $300

Should you have a larger kitchen or more intricate plan, please note that you can spend OVER this amount, although you will have to pay the difference. ie, Should you wish an intricate Roxx island that costs $6,000, you will pay the $2,600 difference.

**Installation costs are not included in the above.

Thank you soooo much to the Hopkins team for your hard work with this package - and to everyone that has contributed to this part of the package!!!!!

Even More Thank Yous..........

Where do we start...I'll get images of the massive pink bows & ribbon tails being painted throughout town at the moment - it looks amazing.... Anyway, more thank-yous spring to mind...

Wallace Corp - for providing all of our beef.
Wrigleys - for mints for the evening.
PCD Fire Designs - for sponsoring the drawing of our fire plans.
Paper Zone Putaruru for the hand stamps...
Laser Electrical- Putaruru have donated $1500 worth of sparkie time to install the kitcken.
Putaruru Electrical have donated $1500 worth of sparkie time for the garden of Eden auction.
The Cutting Co - Davines - Love Shampoo & Love Conditioner plus Pink Wizard Styling Product Total value $97.50 of course they are all PINK and are going into the Pink Paradise raffle......

and once again many more to come online as they are finalised...

AND TO TOP IT ALL OFF.....TIRAU ARE NOW JOINING US IN TURNING PINK FOR OCTOBER - THANK YOU GUYS FOR SUPPORTING THIS FANTASTIC EVENT!!

Our Contacts.....

Annie - 07 8835 611, Anne 07 8838 942 or Natalie on 07 8837 668.

Annie at work - 07 883 7272

or email us :
Annie - annie.f@xtra.co.nz
Anne - TheWhites@orcon.net.nz
or Annies Mobile - 027 566 2773
Annes Mobile - 021 077 8775

Thanks.......

So What's In The Raffle So Far.........Raffle Tickets are $5 each...

*PINK PARADISE*
La More Sweets Tirau—Basket value $380
China Plate—Basket value $300
Mattel Pink Scrabble
Home Sweet Home Tirau—Pink Tools/Pink Teatowel
Mitre 10 Pink Tool Set
Mattel Barbie Doll Sets
Body Ease—Massage
Nutrimetics Basket
Cassius Blue Beauty Voucher
Notting Hill Tirau Voucher value $50

*Social Butterfly*
Loose Goose Tirau—voucher value $200
Shanton Clothing Voucher - value $100
Skyline Skyrides Rotorua Family Voucher
Body Ease—Massage
Tuscany Road Putaruru—voucher value $100
The Cutting Co Putaruru—Cut & Colour + Davines Pink Products value $100
Chemist Basket
Rainbows End Voucher—1 Adult / 1 Child Pass
Steinies Barber Shop Putaruru—Mens Haircut & Mens Product
Notting Hill Tirau—Jewellery Torso / Mosiac Vase

*Romance & Relaxation*
Romar Holiday Home Matakana Island—2 nights accommodation
Maungatautari Lodge Dinner Voucher for 2
Bed Bath & Beyond Voucher value $100
Body Ease—Massage
Mattel Pink Scrabble
The Grog Shop Putaruru Basket
Chemist Basket
Harvey Travel Tokoroa Voucher -value $200
Notting Hill Tirau—Jewellery Torso / Flowers

plus much more to be added as it is gifted……

Please check our website as more additions will be added soon
and for photos of some items already there!!
www.putaruruthinkpink.co.nz

Annette is farewelled...

Today was the funeral for Annette. The Rural Party Girls would like to thank Annah Stretton & Tony Hope of Annah S - you see Annette was holding out for Think Pink, and her big wish that had been granted was to be dressed by Annah Stretton for the Partaay - Annah & Tony very kindly (and in the middle of fashion week) agreed that Annette should go out ready for the Partaay, and kindly gave us a dress and lace jacket all in pink for Annette to be buried in - so Annette may not be with us in body for the ball, but she'll certainly be with us in spirit....And at one of the readings, it was said that she would be one very mischievous angel!!!!! How True......

In Memory Of Annette......

Can you please excuse us for the next few days - all that we have planned has gone awry as Annette (the most fantabulous star of our movie) passed away, aged just a tender 37! We send our hearts & prayers to her family.........

The photo was taken 8 weeks ago on the day of her movie debut with the amazing Trudy B from Unichem Putaruru giving her the full make-over,,,,

Luke Thompson.....

Hot Off The Press!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was confirmed today that LUKE THOMPSON - WILL - be coming to play at Putaruru Think Pink - WOW WOW WOW WOW...

For those of you that don't know - Luke is an amazing up & coming NZ artist who has just recently opened for OP SHOP on their NZ tour - and if you want to see a snippet - click here to see his SAY YOU"LL STAY video...

We would like to say, that Lukes band gave us a $3,000 reduction in support of the event!!! Thank you soooooooooo much guys!

Yet More Thank yous.......

Wow - what a week! Sponsorships & money is coming in and we'd just like to thank the following people.....

Putaruru Mitre 10 - 2 Pink tool kits for the raffle - A table top patio heater AND a Barcelona 5 piece Hardwood patio setting (4 chairs & table) for our "Garden of Eden" auction.
Over The Moon Cheese - Putaruru - Sue is making PINK CHEESE for our cheeseboard - HOW COOL IS THAT!
Corrugated Creations - Tirau - for the most amazing pink 3D corrugated ribbon.
The Loose Goose - Tirau - Thank you to Basil & Carol - cafe vouchers for the raffle.
Skyline Rides in Rotorua - a family pass for the gondola & luge for the raffle.
Rainbows End - Auckland - for your day passes for the raffle.
Tuscany Road - Putaruru (once again) for your clothing voucher.
Cutting Co - Putaruru - for your voucher.
Body Ease - Andrea works from Putaruru & Hamilton - 3 massage vouchers for each raffle.
Absolute Coffee - Matamata - All of the coffee for after dinner!
Chelsea Sugar - Auckland - for the individual sugars for coffee & tea - ALL PINK
Hair Affair - Putaruru - for your voucher for the raffle.
Sue Harper - Nutrimetics - a fantastic PINK basket chocca with goodies for the raffle.
Heather Leonard - Naked Gallery - Tirau - Lady In The Pink Dress painting for auction.
Plumb Co - Plumbing Voucher to go with the kitchen -
speaking of which:::::


The START of our Kitchen - "Putting The Heart In The Home" will go online tomorrow - Hopkins Joinery have collaborated with their suppliers to bring us the cabinetry part of our kitchen going up for auction...This part alone is worth over $17,000...

Keep watching - and thank you to everyone for your amazing generosity!

Thank You Pub Charity.....

A huge thank you to Pub Charities for among on board and adding a massive boost to our event....

Holiday Auction....Thanks to Kay Humphries, Travel Managers Putaruru!!

Okay - here's the details of the holiday that we have for auction......

The best part of this is that you get to choose!!

Up for auction is one hell of a great trip.....

YOU GET TO CHOOSE...Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane...
What's in the package we hear you ask.......

Flights for 2 to any of the above centres,
3 nights accommodation
Tickets for 2 to see a show of your choice

So what is it to be - a romantic weekend away? Take the kids too? A girlies trip? One for your mates? A gift for Mum & Dad for Christmas - now if only my kids were working..........

Tickets On Sale Monday......

Ok, Ok, the day is finally here - thanks to Becks for pointing out that we didn't say on the site where tickets were available from.....1st September is when they go on sale.......

Okay the main ticket outlet is Putaruru Information Centre, PO Box 155, Putaruru. Phone: 07 883 7284 email: putaruruinfo@xtra.co.nz - Anne Berben is in charge there.

They have cash, eftpos & cheque facilities, and if you are posting a cheque for tickets, please either send a stamped adressed envelope or add 50 cents to your cheque for postage.

If you are over in Hamilton, you can also buy your tickets from the Hockin Building over by the Breast Care Centre, and just a hop and a step from the carpark..
Facilities are cash or cheque thank you.

Sorry, we don't have credit card facilities as we'd loose 4% in fees.....

Cheques made payable to Putaruru Think Pink please..

And thank you all for your support ;o)

Raffle Prize From The China Plate

GRASSROOTS......

Wow - once again we have yet another exceptional entry today.....The Grassroots Trust has given the WBCT a grant that is to be used on Think Pink - wow - it will cover the canapes and a band and some of our cheffing services so a huge thank you to them. Ambreed have upped their sponsorship, and we were amazed as it happened right in the middle of the meeting, which blew us away - thank you Ambreed. On the raffle front, La More Sweets confirmed that their donation was worth well over $300, and yesterday Hayley Heke at the China Plate in Putaruru sent us her raffle pack for the Pink Paradise and it is a gorgeous set of jewellery holders and jewellery in true vintage style valued at $300 - keep watching this space for the next slide show on Hayley's donation..A BIG THANK YOU THERE for the China Plate too...Keep watching this space, as we pile on the updates over the next few weeks - there's a few web pages afoot too......

Super Sydney, Noble Nolan & Leanient Leon!

So where have we been yet again??? Well in the midst of calving, I had a birthday - the one before the big 40 - and yes that one is planned already! Then last Wednesday, I had surgery number 13 in 4 years - the number didn't impress me much - so Monday for the first time ever, I tried to get out of it saying I was too busy with Pink, but really I was getting all superstitious and crapping myself - I was not impressed about the situation at all HOWEVER, it gave me some down time and time to say how impressed we are here about the 3 Amigos above........Nolan & Leon are twins and if you didn't know them too well, you would certainly get them mixed up, we can only imagine what amount of trouble they got up to when they were younger...Leon with his partner Odette, own Odeon Computers in Putaruru where Nolan works, and Leon spares us Nolan's time, whilst Nolan spares us his patience - who else would put up with emails with the subject line - Here's your bloody information now bugger off and leave us alone!(and that's a good one) They are devoting ALL of their time and expertise for free and we are totally graciously humbled by what they do, and yes they know that we are having a laugh...THANK YOU ODEON COMPUTERS.......

Then there is Sydney. Sydney came to us via the Fantabulous Jenni Scarlet at the Trust. During the day, Sydney is IT personnel at the hospital - a job hard enough in itself - then in his spare time (YEAH RIGHT) he has 4U Computers in Hamilton - then between each breath that he takes, he is donating that time to host our website - check it out at www.putaruruthinkpink.co.nz - yet another work horse on our team. THANK YOU TOO SYDNEY, we're not sure if you guys really know the extent of which our success relies on you, but we thank you once again for the donation of your time and expertise in your already busy lives to showcase our event.

We have a whopper of a Think Pink meeting taking place on Monday, at this rate, we'll be holding court on my bed - I was going to say that growing up in the UK, Paula Yates used to have this section on the breakfast show called On The Bed With Paula - maybe we could call it on the bed with Annie, but as Natalie pointed out, she died of a drug overdose, so maybe we need to not call it anything!! Thanks Nat......So tonight we give thanks for the generosity of our Pink sponsors & advisors, wireless internet, cordless phones, laptop computers, a comfortable bed and my last morphine tablet.....

Until Monday

Mammogramms...Put your big girls panties on!

It's been a funny week of sorts - last week saw us in Central TV with Think Pink, Nat was the first to see it and told us not to watch it as we looked pasty faced, AND we looked like we'd been sprized into the sofa and needed a can opener to get us out - as you can see, we are our own critics...we've never laughed so much ever! Annes new worker starts on the farm on Monday so that will free her up a little, and I have a wee surgery next week, so that will give me chance to make phone calls next week!! Yesterday saw me have my first mammogram and without a word of a lie I was crapping myself to put it politely. On Monday however we went to see Annette - the star of our movie, and she was having an awful day as she was in alot of pain as her tumors were pressing on her spine, to say it was a downer day after that would be an understatement. Nats and I left feeling ssssooooo helpless. Yesterday prior to the mammogram, I was thinking of how everyone told me how painful it would be - yes, even those who had never had one - it was the quietest I'd ever been EVER EVER EVER in the whole world honest!! As I was sat in the changing rooms at the new fancy Hamilton Imaging Centre, I began to think of Annette and her daily struggle and thought, just put your big girl panites on and deal with it. So with the sense of humour that the 3 of us have, I began to think of the funny things we've experienced over think pink - then the radiolodist went to get a gown to cover me up and I had to giggle because she was sooooo concerned to cover me up, yet second later, I was flashing her an eyeful!
Anyway, for those of you putting it off - IT DID NOT HURT!! I kept thinking any minute now, any minute now, any minute now - and then I thought, bloody hell, the scaremongerers amongst us could actually put someone off having a mammogram when it depends on your pain threshold how the rest of your life "COULD" pan out. It really wasn't painful at all.

You know, when I was expecting my first baby, the midwife in the UK asked me about my birth plan and I said I was going to give birth, it was going to bloody hurt then I would worry about my child for the rest of it's life, she told me it was the most realistic one she had ever heard.....

So for those of you putting off going for a mammogram, it may hurt a little, but it will sure take away that worry, and if you saw Annette writhing in agony on Monday morning like we did, squishy boobs for a few seconds is really the least of our worries.....So what are you waiting for????? I think a trip to La More is coming on as a bravery award........

La More Sweets - Tirau...

I di say yesterday that I would fill you in on the La More Sweets from Tirau, but first I've just had an email from Anne White asking if I had put the photo of the ginger calf with two blondes up on purpose..I had to laugh as I hadn't, but Anne is the redhead and Nat & I are blondes...even if mine is covering the grey!! Anyway, La More today gave us this fantastic prize to go into the Pink Paradise raffle. Inside it is:
A vintage French style plate.
A pink English roses jug.
Coconut Ice
Bassetts baby Jelly Babies
Love Hearts
Frys Turkish Delight
Galaxy Chocolate Bars - multiple bars
Fruit Polos
Thorntons Toffee
Nougat
Bon-bons
Frys Peppermint Cream
Blackberries and raspberries
Sour Apples
Fruit pastilles
and more.......
Lots of these are English imports, and cost an arm and a leg - I know for sure becuase being a POM means that these are the things that I can't give up....If you want to have that Olde World charm of an amazing sweet shop, just call in. They are No 3 Main Rd, Tirau. It is one of the new shops up by the Loose Goose in Tirau, I know that when I walked in for the first time, I was transported back to the sweet shop next door to my primary school in the UK...And yes, they have soooo many KIWI ones too - and for ex pat POMS, they have Hula Hoops, but I can't fit them on my fingers anymore to eat them - for the non POMS, they are circular potato chips, and as kids, we would put one on each finger tip and crunch them off as we walked home from school....Those were the days!!

We're still here......

Well that's the end of another week that was! The AB's have just had a much needed awesome convincing win, and the wind is howling. 2 of us here are in the thick of calving - neither of us have the breed of calves above, but how cute do they look.....Anne has lost their worker due to illness, her kids have been sick & in and out of the Docs this week - with 6 kids, lergies pass through pretty quickly, although 1 coming back sick from World Youth Day in Sydney didn,t help! Natalie doesn't want to rewind this week and start again, she just want's to forget it altogether - we joke that she usually does (and forgets which car she's just been in which she's done twice in one day yet again). Monday & Tuesday this week saw me turning in 10 hour work days because of meetings, Nat & I were out of our houses for 14 hours each on Tuesday (although after our Business after 5 on Tuesday, we shot down to Tokoroa to see SATC with 6 other girlies which was a hoot), Wednesday we all went to the Waikato Times Offices to talk PINK, then all back to work, Thursday all of to Matamata to film PINK for TV Central which will show on Monday and Tuesday next week on Everyday with Anne Maree who's due to have her baby any minute - BIG THANK YOU TO REXINE....Friday morning I was awake at 4am, and not even reading the last Putaruru Concept Plan for work could tire my eyes, a meeting with Waikato Uni for work in the afternoon tied up the week nicely.

Our meeting for Pink this week as you can tell was in between driving to Hamilton and Matamata, and yet we have achieved heaps in the gaps in between. Thank you's go to McCabes Toyworld and Kiwibank in Putaruru, for 100 free envelopes for our next round of sponsorship asks, Annah Stretton and Tony Hope once again for 80m pink tulle, the ePosters, and for being there. JENNI SCARLET for everything that she does, this woman works tirelessly for the trust, patients with breast cancer, then has to help us guys out too, so thank you Jenni. Hopkins Joinery - especially Ron and Hillary who have no idea how much we value everything that they are doing - all will be apparent later. Go Bus for helping out Anne, everyone submitting photos for our movie, Nolan from Odeon Computers for our Amazing website, and Sydney Mounsey at 4U Computers for the hosting, Grassroots Charitable Trust for your support, and tomorrow, another raffle prize from La More Sweets in Tirau but more on that when it's been collected. Righty, I'm off to bed!

Meet Ruby...

Meet Ruby guys, this is the doll that has been made for us, and if you're in the Hockin Building at Waikato Hospital, you'll see Ruby on the main reception counter...More to follow!!

Fiona Tunnicliffe's Cow