Around 450 people packed the Performing Arts Centre at St Stanislaus’ College for a trivia night, monster raffle and fundraiser auction that raised $40,000 for Hayley and the Porter family.

Hayley was badly hurt in a fall from a horse during an equestrian event in Bathurst in March.

She was airlifted to Westmead Hospital where she was placed in an induced coma as her family waited by her bedside.

Hayley spent months in hospital and rehabilitation before returning home last month and her unexpected appearance at the fundraiser on Saturday night was one of the real highlights.

Organiser Emma Boland said they were still tallying the final figure raised but she expected it to reach $40,000.

“We were up to $35,000 on Saturday night through tickets and auction items and we think it will be about $40,000 when everything is counted,” Ms Boland said.

“It just goes to show how generous the Bathurst community is.

“We never expected to sell-out on Saturday night and we never expected that people who didn’t even know Hayley would be there just to show their support.

“We didn’t really have a target in mind – we just wanted to raise as much money as we could.

“The Porter family are just over the moon. They’re just a great family.”

Ms Boland said organisers did not know if Hayley was going to make it on the night.

“The real highlight was that Hayley was there and she got up a made a little speech, thanking everyone,” she said.

The crowd bid on more than 30 items during an auction led by James Walton and Tom Stocks of Bowyer and Livermore, with the top items fetching up to $4500.

Ms Boland said the most popular auction items included a V8 Supercars package, a day on a yacht on Sydney Harbour and earthmoving services.

Doctors say Hayley can expect a long recovery and it may be over another 18 months to three years that she can expect to keep seeing improvements.

A student at MacKillop College, Hayley is determined to return to school next year to undertake her Higher School Certificate.

She plans to study veterinary science at university.