Everything’s coming up roses

Eurobodalla supporters of the Red Rose House project gathered at South Bank restaurant on Wednesday for an update on the project and to raise more funds.

Project leader and LJ Hooker Batemans Bay managing director Michael Skuse told the attendees it was hoped the house would be at lock up stage by Christmas.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a hereditary disease affecting the mucos glands of the lungs, liver, pancreas, and intestines. It causes progressive disability due to multisystem failure and one child is born with CF in Australia every four days.

A person with CF must use intensive daily airway clearance techniques to combat the build-up of mucus in the lungs and can take up to 40 enzyme replacement tablets each day.

CFA chief executive officer Terry Stewart said it was hoped the house would be sold for $350,000 and most of the money would go to CFA for research.

He said it was the biggest current fundraising project for CFA in Australia.

Mr Stewart said a similar project was conducted in Brisbane about four years ago, with more than $400,000 raised for CFA.

“There is no cure (for CF),” he said. “The money (raised) goes into research for care to improve the quality of life for people with CF.”

Mr Stewart said CFA relies on fundraising activities to pay for research into medical assistance in the care for people with CF, with $700,000 raised across Australia each year.

He said that in the past 15 years research was able to increase the life expectancy of people with CF to 37 years old.

Red Rose House has been designed by an architect without charge and built with the assistance of local tradespeople on land donated by Sea Breeze Estate developers.

“To build a house with no money is very difficult,” Mr Skuse said.

He said the project would not have been possible without the support and generosity of the community and businesses.

About 60 people who attended the luncheon raised $7090, including a $5000 donation from Batemans Bay Apex.