IDEAL INSTITUTION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18630, 11 February 1924, Page 9

IDEAL INSTITUTION.

AUCKLAND KARiTANE HOME.

FUND OF £12,000 RAISED. OPPORTUNITY AND EXAMPLE Public appreciation of the national service performed by the Plunket Society, as expressed in the response to last year's campaign for fund 3, has enabled the society to proceed with the actual preparations for the opening of the Karitane Hospital and Mothercraft Training Centre at Mount Albert within a few months. The committee appealed to the public for £15,000, the amount being determined as the absolute minimum to finance such an undertaking, and subscriptions paid and promised amount to £12,000. The latter figure does not include any portion of the fund raised by the commercial travellers' art union, as that campaign has not yet been completed and it is confidently "expected that the list of contributions will be increased before the activities of the home are actually commenced. The beautiful home and ground* presented by Mr. A. C. Caughey will require alterations and some additions to adapt them to the new purpose. They have been planned in detail, and tenders will presently be called for the work. The committee has had the assistance of Dr. Truby King and Miss Pattrick, who have conferred with the honorary architects, Messrs. Chilwell and Trevithick. Scrupulous attention has been paid to the importance of economy, since the object is not to establish a model of luxury but the most efficient means of carrying on a branch of the society's work that has long been neglected because there were no facilities for doing it. The cost of the?e alterations and additions may be £3000. They will include a cottage for the accommodation of mothers, which, in accordance with a long-standing intention, will be named as a memorial of the late Mrs. Bloomfield, whose devoted and self sacrificing work during her presidency is remembered with humble gratitude by every member of the society and forma an inspiring example for their efforts. Liberal Assistance. Throughout the campaign for the estab lishment of the home, the committee has been continuously encouraged by manifestations of generous assistance. In addition to the gift of his own home, Mr. Caughey has made other contributions, including furnishings of a very considerable value. When he first offered the property to the society, he obtained an expert report on the condition of the building. The only defect revealed was in a few timbers in the basement. That his gift might be without blemish, Mr. Caughey has had these portions completely renewed aC his own expense. The legal formalities in connection with the transfer of the gift were extensive. Both the society's solicitors, Messrs. Morpeth, Gould and Wilson, and Mr. Caughey's, Messrs. Thome, Thorne and White, remitted their fees. Beyond that, the planning and supervision of the alterations has been undertaken free of charge by Messrs. Chilwell and Trevithick. Their selection as honorary architects was made from a list of similar offers that was embarrassing in its generosity. A Unique Opportunity. No date has yet been fixed for the opening of the home, but it will necessarily be two or three months hence. The prospective character and value of the institution are described in a letter addressed to the committee recently by Dr. King in reference to his conference with the architects. "We went into every point in detail and discussed every item with a view to making your institution ideal, and I do really feel that if matters are carried out exactly as we have planned them, you will certainly have the most charming and health-giving resort for infants and school for heartening failing mothers and setting them on the right track that has been attained so far, or, for that matter, that will be attained anywhere. An opportunity such as you have brought about in Auckland does not occur twice in the world, and I am sure you will all be very proud of your achievement. ' "Of course, I see matters, as always in this connection, 'from world-wide effects. Your home will be visited not only by people from all over the Auckland province, but from all over New Zealand, and by a large number of people from Australia and the other side of the world. With this in view, I am sure voi' will agree that it should be made as perfect as possible, consistent with every reasonable economy in execution." Referring to the estimated cost of adapting the buildings, Dr. King says the amount is the irreducible minimum, and yet will provide what will suffice for many years. "After all," he remarks, "the non-ex-penditure of £1000 provides only £60 a year of income, and I feel sure that the increased donations which will come to you cm account of having an institution perfectly adapted for its purpose in every way, and supremely attractive and homelike, will bring in far more than that sum annually, as the outcome of a liberal and enlightened policy. Education of Mothers. "The double function of educating the mothers amd educating the Karitane nurses would alone justify what is needed in the way of expenditure, if there were no direct benefit to the babies themselves •who will be taken in for care and treatment. I envy you in yow opportunities, and am sure you will make the most of them. What you achieve in Auckland will have an enormous influence in encouraging and stimulating the other centres to do the best they can— in the spirit of rivalry, but on the highest grounds." The value and the necessity of the home as a centre for training in mothercraft are already demonstrated by the fact that applications for admission to the course for Karitane nurses are greater than the home can accommodate.