RADIO AT KEW HOSPITAL

Southland Times, Issue 23676, 26 November 1938, Page 9

RADIO AT KEW HOSPITAL

HANDING OVER THE INSTALLATION GIFT OF CITIZENS OF INVERCARGILL The radio installation at the Southland hospital was officially handed over to the Southland Hospital Board at a ceremony at the hospital yesterday afternoon. Representatives of the Invercargill Rotary Club, which sponsored the movement to provide wireless for the patients at the hospital, members of the Hospital Board and visitors were present. Mr T. Golden, chairman of the board, presided. “The occasion is a very happy one and I am sure it will result in bringing happiness to many,” said the chairman of the board. “Radio' is fashionable in all homes and it reaches all homes. It is good to think that the Rotary Club has thought of us in this way. The board had made provision for the installation of a radio system in the hospital, but the members of the Rotary Club got to work, and I may say that nothing in the administration has been appreciated more than the gift by the club.” Details of the donations and cost of the installation was given by Mr T. Pryde, secretary of the board. The first donation of £lO was received by the board in February 1937 from the Southland branch of the New Zealand Garage Proprietors’ Association, he said. Four months later £235 9/- was received from the Invercargill Rotary Club. Other gifts totalled £1 16/5, and with interest the board had available the sum of £247 10/5. In addition there was a balance from the children’s ward furnishing account available. The original donation towards the children’s ward furnishing account Was received in 1926, being funds raised by the Little Southlanders under the direction of Cousin Betty of The Southland Times, which totalled £217 14/9.

COST £450 A subsidy of £1 for £1 was received from the Government, and the total of £435 9/6 was invested. With accrued interest the fund had reached the sum of £612 17/9 when the first payment was made, this being £74 for special tiles supplied for the walls of the children’s ward at Kew. Since the opening of the hospital the cost of furnishings for the children’s ward had been met from the fund, and a balance of £l5O was held on fixed deposit. In 1935 the editor of The Southland Times, writing on behalf of Cousin Betty and the Little Southlanders, indicated to the board that as all the money available from the Little Southlanders’ fund would not be required for furnishing the ward, it would be in accordance with the wishes of those who gave the money that any balance should go towards the cost of installing wireless equipment in the children’s ward. “The total cost of the installation will be about £450 and the balance of the money required to meet the cost, over and above the donations mentioned, will be met from bequests made to the board for general purposes, the funds of which are invested pending disbursement,” added Mr Pryde Mr W. H. Boyes, president of the Invercargill Rotary Club, said the club was pleased .to be able to start the movement to get arj installation to serve the patients in hospital. The money collected, by members of the club had been given by the citizens of Invercargill, and he wished to thank them and the firms for their support. Mr J. D. Gilmore was the president of the club when the fund was started and to him and Mr G. R. Baxter, who did the major part of the collecting work they all owed their thanks. He congratulated the board on having such an up-to-date installation.

“If it brings brightness to the lives of the sick the object of Rotary will have been achieved,” said Mr Boyes. Mr Gilmore told how the scheme first came to be discussed and said that the first person who talked of radio in the hospital was Dr McNickle, the superintendent. He praised the work of Mr Baxter and expressed pleasure that the installation at last was completed. Before officially handing over the installation on behalf of the Rotary Club and citizens Mr Baxter said the contractors had given them a splendid job. It had been a pleasure to collect the money for such a noble cause, he said. His task had been comparatively easy as both Rotarians and citizens had responded well and cheerfully. The installation, of New Zealand make, was similar to that in the Wellington hospital, which had given every satisfac. tion.

Cousin Betty also spoke and said the Little Southlanders always enjoyed doing sorhething to raise funds for worthy purposes. They would get pleasure from the appreciation of their work. She thought the funds raised could not have been put to better purpose. Mr J. D. Campbell, manager of the contracting firm, said that the installation contained three separate amplifier systems with independent tuning controls and independent output systems, this making possible the distribution simultaneously of three different programmes to various wards. The complete plant had power in reserve for future extensions in the hospital. There were five miles of wiring, 110 sets of headphones and 14 loudspeakers.

The installation was switched on for the first time by Mr Baxter.