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3. 3AW Variety Radiothon 2011

Thank you to all the loyal listeners of 3AW who donated a total of $185,490 - that's 908 bikes for children in need through the 2011 Radiothon on 20 July.

Special thanks also to our amazing friends, staff and announcers at 3AW who make this fantastic project possible each year. We always look forward to meeting our donors at the Bikes 4 Kids presentations.

For the past eight years, Variety - the children’s charity has partnered with 3AW to raise funds for over 10,000 bikes for disadvantaged children through the 3AW Variety Radiothon.

Variety Celebrity Ambassador and International Award winner Derryn Hinch has championed the event since its inception in 2002. Derryn’s Drive program consistently raises more money for bikes than any other program.

Schools and welfare organisations in the metropolitan and surrounding areas nominate disadvantaged children to receive a new bike - Variety believes that these children shouldn’t miss out – a bike not only provides play and acceptance with peers but also allows children a vital form of exercise.

Derryn recounts, “When I was ten I got my first two-wheeler. I had worked hard at weekends and before school on my father’s milk run. I thought I might be rewarded with a bike for Christmas. On Christmas morning I got home from the milk run and was disappointed there wasn’t one under the tree. But I did get a bike that Christmas morning. They had hidden it at the end of a long piece of string. I followed into the basement. And when I saw it, I looked at it and I cried”.

“I didn’t care that it was a second-hand bike. Didn’t care that the peeling chrome handlebars had been gussied up with that silver paint they used to smear thickly on the old coal range. Didn’t even care that it was a girl’s bike! It was MY bike. My first two-wheeler.Believe me. Each year I have personally seen these kids’ faces as they receive their new bikes and helmets. It is magic. It is Christmas magic.”

The 3AW Variety Radiothon runs across all programs on the station starting at midday with Denis Walter through to Bruce and Phil on Nightline at midnight. Callers to the station are encouraged to donate $200 which covers the cost of a bike and a helmet or to make a contribution towards the cost of a bike, in any way they can.

Donors can tune into 3AW (693AM) and call the telephone room on 1300 553 693 from midday to midnight to make a donation.

The bikes are assembled and presented to children at five presentations during November and December in Melbourne and surrounding areas.