N.Z. HEALTH STAMP SCHEME STARTED BY YOUNG DANE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 43, 26 September 1949, Page 5

N.Z. HEALTH STAMP SCHEME STARTED BY YOUNG DANE

' The history of the health stamp is a romantic one. Forty years ago, Einar Holboell, a young mail clerk in a small Post Office in Denmark was working far into the night on Christmas Eve sorting cards, He thought of the poorer V homes where greetings were needed but not forthcoming and an inspiration seized him, why not a voluntary tax on greeting cards? * .And so was born the idea of the Christmas seal. • The inventor could not possibly have • realised the magic health value of his idea, the forerunner of the New Zealand Health Stamp, not only to raise money to care for children in camps but in carrying to millions of people every year the stimulus to guard our children against disease. Private Movement The movement in the first place was a private one brought into being through the efforts of a few public spirited men and women who saw the need for giving some help to children. Camps were established' and gratifying results have been achieved. It is the belief of those behind the organisation that any child who has the proper food, sufficient rest and exercise, fresh air and sunshine, who is kept adequately clean and suitably clothed, has a reasonable chance of health. It is their belief also that the neglect of these essentials is the cause, direct or indirect, of many ailments and disabilities. Another belief could be added that a child to be happy and contented needs a wholesale and tranquil environment. The routine in a Health Camp keeps* these benefits in view, and those who have had the opportunity of a visit to one of them will have been left in no doubt whatever as to the value Of these institutions. This year’s campaign opens on. Monday, October 3. In this 21st year of the scheme, it is proposed to make a special effort. Whakatane’s Kecord Whakatane’s record to date is better than some, Whakatane having the seventh highest sales in this postal district. The amount handed over to the Health Camps last year was £94 7s Bd. This was the best local result- in the history of the movement. It should be realised that for every Is spent on health / stamps 8d is available for ordinary postage and 4d is a donation to the 1 camps. Children are selected for camps on the basis of the following classification: (1) Children suffering from malnutrition, (2) Children convalescing from an illness or operation, (3) Children in need of' recuperation but not suffering from any physical" disability. Last year twelve children were sent from Whakatane but unfortunately there .' were fifty who needed the treatment. The' waiting list is usually a large one. The Health Stamp undertaking is one that, should commend itself to anyone concerned with the humanitarian aspects of our national life ' and it is hoped that Whakatane’s effort this year will set new and ' higher standards. ( . In the past the bulk of the work has been done by the Whakatane Chamber of Commerce and the Post Office.

Preventative Medicine It has been said that the Government should take this over. This is the view of the complete socialist. It may be said that the campaign is just another tax. But it is a very sound experiment in preventative medicine. Whichever view we take the fact remains that these children need assistance and it is the people who are providing that assistance.