Wanaka St John's fundraising campaign to buy a four-wheel-drive ambulance received a boost this week with a donation of $3000 from the organisers of "The Best Of The Best" show.
St John wants to raise $200,000 by December so it can replace its 15-year-old Chevrolet ambulance, which has travelled more than 300,000km, with a 4WD Mercedes Benz.
It is hoped to have the new ambulance ready in time for the 2010 winter ski season.
Fundraising efforts continue this weekend with a sausage sizzle at the New World Supermarket car park.
The sausage sizzle is an initiative of the Herbert family, who recently used St John and other emergency services when their son Tim (14), a promising snowboarder, became sick at a snowsports camp and required urgent medical attention at Dunedin Hospital.
They will donate proceeds to St John, the Otago Rescue Helicopter Trust and the intensive care unit at Dunedin Hospital.
St John ambulance officers in Wanaka respond to about 800 calls a year, travelling more than 55,000km.
