Seventeen-year-old footy fanatic Max Uren was in a state of shock when GRV CEO Alan Clayton presented him with a family pass to the AFL Grand Final on Saturday morning.
It all came about thanks to greyhound racing’s 2019 Chase for Charity promotion, which has raised almost $120,000 for a range of charity organisations over the past three years.
One of the main beneficiaries has been Ronald McDonald House, which keeps the families of seriously ill children together and close to the care their child needs.
Max received a phone call from hosts Craig Hutchison, Liam Pickering and GRV’s Louise Martin live from Victorian radio’s Off The Bench studio on Saturday morning, asking Max to head outside.
It was there where he found Alan, accompanied by his pet greyhound Zoe, and four Grand Final tickets in hand for Max, mum Narelle, father Drew and younger brother Ned.
The Uren family, from the small town Derrinallum in Victoria’s west, has spent 99 days at Ronald McDonald House since February after Max was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma.
This has allowed Max to have his family close by while he receives the treatment he needs at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne.
“Max and his family have great courage,” Louise said. “You talk about the courage involved in playing football, but this takes it to another level.”
“From our Racing Minister, Martin Pakula to the GRV Board and CEO Alan Clayton, this is how we give back to the community. We employ more than 4,000 people throughout regional Victoria and they are our family.”
Hutchy also announced that as well as attending the Grand Final with their parents, Max and Ned would also take part in the Macca’s Kick to Kick initiative as part of today’s festivities.
