Lake Grace-Pingrup and Boxwood Hill Big Freeze summons up community spirit to fight MND

Community spirit shone brightly in Lake Grace on Saturday when the Lake Grace-Pingrup and Boxwood Hill football clubs came together for their annual Big Freeze. The fourth annual event has raised a whopping $65,000 so far, with more donations still coming in to help in the fight against motor neurone disease. Both communities have been hit hard by the incurable disease, and in a cruel turn of events, the disease has hit home again, with Boxwood’s Penny Moir recently diagnosed with MND. She was there on the day with husband Mick to thank the communities for their efforts. Brownlow medallist Matt Priddis stepped out of retirement to help the towns raise money, lacing up his boots for the Lake Grace-Pingrup side. After the league match, the big slide was wheeled out and crowds gathered to watch players and community members plunge into a pool of ice in costume. Before Priddis went down the slide, he took a moment to congratulate the country communities for what they were doing to support Neale Daniher’s FightMND foundation. The West Coast Eagles champion said he had enjoyed being part of the day. “It feels really good (to be out there again). It was really fun and it was a really good standard, lots of good young fellas running around and having a good time,” he said. “It’s a good community and everyone has got a big smile on their face, and that is what it is all about.” A dance with Priddis was a hotly contested item in the Big Freeze auction. Dozens of other items went under the hammer to drive the money raised on the day into the tens of thousands. The event’s fundraising total over four years is more than $215,000.