By Jamie Salter
The local community braved the winter chill at the Beaconsfield Junior Football Club’s Big Freeze event.
Almost 1,000 people attended and raised a total of about $40,000.
Local players, parents and coaches dressed up in costume and took the plunge, sliding into icy water for a good cause.
It was a great night for the whole family with skills contests, training sessions, food trucks, face painting, raffles and giveaways.
Coles Berwick North donated a sausage sizzle on the night and Berwick’s Toyato Dealership was the major sponsor for the event.
Special AFL guests Changkuoth Jiath (CJ) of Hawthorn, Ed Curnow of Carlton, Michael Hurley of Essendon and WAFL player Katie Brennan of Richmond were in attendance.
The sporting stars were swamped by children requesting autographs and also took part in the ice slide alongside parents and coaches.
The evening was hosted by former Hawthorn player Ben Dixon.
Beaconsfield Junior Football Club secretary Vicky Gwin said the funds raised massively exceeded the original target of $10,000.
“We didn’t really understand how receptive everyone would be because know times are tough at the moment,“ she said.
“Even though it started to drizzle everyone was just super pumped and the whole community made an effort to come down.
“We are the second largest junior club in Australia so for us it’s really important to give back to the local community.
“There are a lot of people in our community who have been affected by MND.“
Vicky thanked the FightMND foundation for supporting the local event.
The Big Freeze was held on Wednesday 8 June at Holm Park Reserve.
Beaconsfield Junior Football Club’s Fight MND Round on Sunday 19 June will have players wearing MND socks on the day.
