VARNI-MAREE Bennett can vouch for the importance of Bathurst’s radiation bus.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Diagnosed with breast cancer, Ms Bennett travelled on the bus five days a week for six weeks from Bathurst to Orange and back for radiation treatment.
“It made a huge difference to me,” she said.
Using the bus – which is provided by Bathurst Community Transport for $5 a day – meant Ms Bennett could save the energy she would have spent driving.
And there were other benefits.
“It’s also quite a fun experience,” she said. “Everyone on the bus becomes quite close. We looked after each other and learned each others’ stories.
“We were a rowdy bunch; we had heaps of fun.”
Ms Bennett – who is just finishing hormone treatment and has been given a good prognosis – was on hand recently when Reliance Bank presented a cheque for $45,000 to Bathurst Community Transport for another three years of sponsorship for the bus service.
It will continue the bank’s involvement with the service that began with its $40,000, three-year sponsorship agreement in 2014.
“Since Reliance came on board, it has really taken the pressure off our organisation to find that extra money each year on top of the generous donations from the community,” Bathurst Community Transport executive officer Leonie Schumacher said.
“That $15,000 [a year] pays for just under half of what the service costs to run each year.”
Ms Schumacher said the bus travels between Bathurst and Orange and back five days a week, 51 weeks of the year and has racked up 150,865 kilometres and taken 287 people to treatment since the service began in October 2012.
“A lot of people [receiving treatment] are fatigued and it gives them back their independence,” she said.
As well, a camaraderie builds up on the bus as the travellers support each other “through the good and the bad”, she said.
As well as the sponsorship, Ms Schumacher said the service would not be possible without the volunteers.
“Without them it would not happen,” she said.
Reliance Bank CEO Mark Genovese said Reliance was pleased to continue supporting the bus service.
”We are very excited about being able to support this worthwhile community organisation for a further three years, which takes us up to a commitment of six years,” he said.
“Over the last three years, we have seen the positive impact that it has had on people going through a pretty challenging time in their lives, which has reconfirmed our commitment to support Bathurst Community Transport.”
