Logistics and transport specialist insurer NTI has raised nearly $600,000 for motor neurone disease (MND) research through its latest raffle.
NTI restored a 1954 “hot lava orange” Chevrolet pickup truck, named Daphne, to raffle for MND research. The insurer drew the winner at the NTI Supercars round in Townsville from 7 July to 9 July, 2023.
Queenslander Peter Rodney, who was among over 30,000 people who joined the raffle, took home the truck.
The funding raised from the raffle, totalling $580,000 will go towards MND research. This brings the total raised by NTI to over $2 million over the last six years.
In April 2023, NTI announced that it had restored Daphne to be raffled for MND research.
The truck, built with a 1954 Chevrolet Cab Over Engine body on a 1969 Chevrolet C-20 Pickup chassis, was in a farm in the US and then brought to Australia. It is mid-century, but it has modern features, including a 460hp LT1 Chevrolet Performance engine.
“Daphne was found on a farm in the USA and purchased by a young Australian working there. Its original owner was supportive of the re-sell once she'd heard about how it would be restored and raffled for the MND cause,” NTI CEO Tony Clark said in a previous statement. “Our commitment to raising funds for MND research comes after NTI's former CEO Wayne Patterson lost his battle with the disease in 2018.
“We established the official NTI MND Research Grant to help fund research into treatment and to ultimately find a cure.”
