ANNUAL REPORT

The Marathon Sick Children's Fund, established by a group of caring citizens in 1989, has again provided significant assistance in the past year to families of sick children to help in offsetting medical travel costs: 

• $37,566 in assistance payments made to ten families with sick children
• $20,286 in donations received
• $110 in administrative expenses

• $527,452 in assistance payments made since inception of the fund in 1989!

In order to raise this significant amount, the residents, business community, and organizations of Marathon and District have shown over and over again their caring and generous nature.  On behalf of all the families that have benefited from this generosity, thank you!

 We want to especially thank the Marathon detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police for once again running their annual Sick Children's Golf Tournament, from which a record donation of $14,000 was received!  The O.P.P. has raised $143,000 from this event over the past 28 years, for which we are extremely grateful!

 As well, we express our sincere gratitude to our many other sustaining individual and corporate donors, including the staff groups of several businesses and organizations, for their continuing generosity.  We also gratefully acknowledge the in-memoriam donations that several families have designated in the past few years.  This thoughtfulness in such a difficult time is certainly valued.

 This past year assistance payments outpaced donations received by $3,300. The high levels of assistance payments made in the past few years have forced the committee to look hard at our policies in order to be able to continue supporting families in need. We will continue to provide support for travel costs, however we are no longer able to reimburse lost wages or child care costs.

 Once again, we remind the public that our mandate is to assist with travel costs to secure medical treatment for the families of sick children in Marathon and District who are experiencing financial hardship.

 Applications and information are available on our web site: marathonsickkids.org.  Once again, thanks to Joseph Newing for his volunteer time on this site and the donation of the web hosting!  Anyone wishing to make donations to the fund can mail them to Box 375, Marathon; charitable donation receipts for income tax purposes will be provided.

                        “NEIGHBOURS HELPING NEIGHBOURS”