Kirstin Nicholson, The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper

The district was filled with the sights and sounds of 110 motorbikes and 44 cars on the weekend, all part of the Gannawarra Memorial Toy Run (GMTR).

The toy run was organised by John Webb and his team for the Combined Churches group. Toys and money collected on the day, and in the collection bins around the district, will be used for hampers to be distributed across the district in December.  

Participants in the toy run set off from Leitchville Saturday morning for Kerang where they had breakfast, travelled to Barham for morning tea and then to the Cohuna recreation reserve. The morning culminated in a show and shine and awarding of prizes.

Vehicles and bikes were judged by the Cohuna Fire Brigade, with prizes being awarded to the top three vehicles and top three bikes. All participants were entered into a raffle and an award given to the person who had travelled the furthest to attend. In a string of kind gestures, all winners donated their cash prizes back to the toy run, and the winner of the accommodation package donated it back for organisers to give to someone else.

The GMTR mascot, PJ Ganna, was auctioned off to the highest bidder. Sara, Harley and Phil will be the custodian of PJ Ganna for the next 12 months and will share his adventures on the GMTR Facebook page. 

Raffle winners: Rich River accommodation – Terry Gregory, Big Lions cake – Vincent McGillivray, Small Lions cake – Darren Berry.

Best Car: Warren Manuel – Customised Chev, Kathy Southern – Ford Thunderbird, Jamie Williams – Falcon Ute.

Best Bike: Mark Arians – Indian side car outfit, Mark Dale – Kawasaki 900, Daniel Heap – Harley Softail Custom.

Furthest travelled: Jim Richards (Bairnsdale), Best dressed: Shane Reeves.

This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 25 November 2021.