infonews.co.nz
INDEX
BUSINESS

Cure Kids and Coronet Peak buddy up for Ticket to Hope

Monday 10 June 2013, 5:03PM

By NZSki

822 views

Cure Kids at Coronet Peak in snowball heaven.
Cure Kids at Coronet Peak in snowball heaven. Credit: NZSki
Four-year-old Katy Archer, from Auckland, who is battling Batton Disease, enjoys her first skidoo ride at Coronet Peak in the capable hands of patroller Allan Swan.
Four-year-old Katy Archer, from Auckland, who is battling Batton Disease, enjoys her first skidoo ride at Coronet Peak in the capable hands of patroller Allan Swan. Credit: NZSki

QUEENSTOWN

Queenstown’s Coronet Peak ski area played host to 15 very special Kiwi kids and their caregivers as part of the annual Cure Kids Ticket to Hope trip this weekend. 

The brave young children, who each live with a life-threatening illness, came from all over New Zealand to enjoy a weekend away from their day-to-day worries in the adventure tourism hot spot of Queenstown.

A trip to Queenstown would not have been complete without some fun in the snow on the ski area’s opening weekend -- aged from four to 14, they were ‘kitted and booted’ for an afternoon of fun at Coronet Peak on Saturday (June 8).

Coronet Peak ski area manager Ross Copland said they were “delighted” to host the youngsters, many of whom were enjoying their first ever trip to the snow.

“To see the look on their faces as they got out on the slopes, threw a few snowballs and rode on groomers and snowmobiles was pure magic,” he said.

The visit to Coronet Peak was topped off with lunch and then a ‘top-secret’ surprise Over The Top helicopter ride from the mountain to The Hills golf course. The weekend also included luging, swimming and hydrosliding, bungy jumping, jet boating, sightseeing and numerous fun treats.

Cure Kids CEO, Vicki Lee said the weekend was the charity’s chance to spoil children who have had to learn far too early in life how to fight to survive.

“When a child is born with a life-threatening illness, their family lives with the hope that one day a cure will be found. Cure Kids is about keeping that hope alive through the research we fund.

“It is an absolute pleasure to host these children for a weekend of fun and adventure in a town where businesses like Coronet Peak open their hearts to help us cure kids.”

For more information about Cure kids go to www.curekids.org.nz. For more information about Coronet Peak go to www.nzski.com.