PATRIOTIC FUND

Wairarapa Times-Age, 2 September 1943, Page 2

PATRIOTIC FUND

COMPLETION OF DISTRICT QUOTA DESIRED £l,BOO BELOW THE GOAL. APPEAL BY MR. T. JORDAN. “When the local appeal committee set out on its task of raising the quota of Masterton and the surrounding district for the National Patriotic Fund, i,t was a race against time, “stated the Mayor, Mr T. Jordan today. The appeal was made at the beginning of March last and in order not to conflict with the impending Liberty Loan the committee decided to confine its operations to the month of March. The appeal met with very real success. “Direct giving was the plan put forward and at the end of the month we were less than £l,BOO below our goal. Since then this district has once again set the main for the whole of the Dominion in connection with the Liberty Loan. Now we are anxious to complete our quota for the Patriotic Fund whose financial year closes at the end of this month. Let us see to it that we do not fail to do our part in the national work. We have had an opportunity of hearing from General Freyberg in person his appreciation of the Patriotic welfare services provided by this fund and their effect on his gallant ‘ball of fire.’ No men are better looked after amongst all the Allied troops and surely there is no greater claim on our generosity. Unfortunately, there have always been some amongst us that have for some reason or another not given the support to the Patriotic Fund that was due from them. Perhaps they will accept the spontaneous testimonial from our famous general. We have had more recently still an opportunity of learning at first hand from service men of this district now on furlough their opinion of the welfare service provided by the fund and there should no longer be any doubt on this head. “The National Patriotic Fund Board is singularly fortunate in its representative in the Middle East. Colonel Waite is a veteran of the last war and was a member of the National Patriotic Fund Board before his appointment to his present position. This is whathe. says in his latest report:—‘The gift parcel scheme is one of the romances of the war —it is nothing less than a modern miracle. Every unit gets what it shows on its ration strength. Every man gets a parcel; if he does not, it is not our fault.’

“Let us not forget those other service men of ours who are stationed in the Pacific in surroundings and conditions that are at least not conductive to the welfare of white men. Ere long all these men, too, will be tried out in action in the tropical jungles of the islands. Surely the least of our duty is to support by all the means in our power the service and sacrifice of our fighting forces. Let us again show to the Dominion that our appreciation is great and our generous instinct second to none.”