S.I. support for Games ‘assured’

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32561, 22 March 1971, Page 2

S.I. support for Games ‘assured’

Christchurch could rest assured that it had the support of other South Island centres in its task of being host to the 1974 Commonwealth Games, said the Games organising committee’s finance chairman (Mr M. F. Hunter) yesterday.

Mr Hunter returned on Saturday from a three-day tour of South Island centres with the organising committee’s

professional money-raiser (Mr B. Michie), who is in the process of establishing appeal committees in 24 New Zealand areas. The committee has set itself a target of $600,000 to help with the cost of the Games. Mr Hunter said he and Mr Michie had been well received in each of the six areas they had visited and in each steps had been taken to set up an appeal committee. It was gratifying, he added, to see that community leaders were willing to serve as chairmen of their local committees. As was Mr R. S. Scott, the organising committee’s chairman, when he accompanied Mr Michie on a visit of North Island centres the previous week, Mr Hunter said he had been encouraged by the way the people of other districts looked upon the Games as New Zealand’s Games and not just something which concerned only Christchurch or Canterbury. Area targets

The South Island areas visited, and the targets each has been set, were:—

Southland ($20,000), Otago ($34,000), North Otago ($8000), South Canterbury ($18,000), Nelson Bays ($16,000), and Marlborough ($14,000). This leaves Mid-Canter-bury, West Coast and Buller still to be covered in the South Island and Mr Michie will take in these areas early this week. He will then travel to the east coast of the North Island and complete his personal visits to the 24 Rugby areas of New Zealand, the regions being used for the appeal.