Avan Lee: On the Hurricanes fundraising effort for Mereana Pearce

The Hurricanes organisation, and players past and present, have come together in a fundraising effort to support Hurricanes wider training group member Nui Muriwai and his partner, Mereana Pearce.

Mereana, 20, was recently diagnosed with SCCOHT (Small Cell Carcinoma of the Ovary, Hypercalcaemic Type), a rare and aggressive form of ovarian cancer that only affects one in 10 million women worldwide.

Since her diagnosis, Mereana has undergone intensive rounds of chemotherapy, two major abdominal surgeries, high-dose radiation, and ongoing immunotherapy – all while being told she may have months to live.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sports Talk podcast with Dancy Wildergrave
from News Talk Z'B.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Seven fifty one.

Speaker 3 (00:14):
We're talking now with Evan Lee, chief executive officer of
the Hurricane. So they're doing a fundraiser. They've got an
auction running. To give us the details and why are
we joined now by Avan?

Speaker 2 (00:28):
Fill the details in for us?

Speaker 4 (00:30):
Mate?

Speaker 5 (00:31):
Yeah, mate, We've got Nui Middleways in a wider training
group and his partner, Midiana Ps is twenty years old
and just been diagnosed for a very rare form of
ovarian cancer, which affects one in ten million women.

Speaker 6 (00:47):
So and it's very aggressive.

Speaker 5 (00:48):
So she's been told she's got a couple of months
to live and there are options with expensive medication or
travel to the US, and they're not sure which way
it's going to go yet they're taking advice. So yeah,
I just thought, how can the Hurricanes help. Nui's a
lovely guy and Midiana they're a lovely couple, So how
can we use our platform to support them?

Speaker 6 (01:11):
Because if you're fifty or sixty getting.

Speaker 5 (01:13):
Cancer, you're absolutely devastated, you know, happening to a twenty year.

Speaker 6 (01:18):
Old it's just horrendous.

Speaker 5 (01:20):
So yeah, we just wanted to weigh in behind it,
and I've called some very humble and loyal Hurricanes players
who've donated amazing items.

Speaker 4 (01:32):
It's just heart wrenching. I had a describe it like
twenty years old, my daughter's twenty five years it's so
close and it actually was one in ten million chance.

Speaker 6 (01:45):
I wow.

Speaker 2 (01:46):
So as far as this this is an auction, how's
it being run? How do people get involved in? What
kind of booty can they pack up? Because look it's
about fundraising, but also for the pool room too. There's
some probably expect quite valuable items there a them.

Speaker 6 (02:02):
Yes, there are.

Speaker 5 (02:03):
I mean you know we're trying to raise as much
as we can and for them, and we've started trade
Me auction which you can obviously look on trade me.
There's some fantastic items. We've got test match jerseys worn
by Tyrol, Lomax and Brad Shields. We've got an All
Blacks jersey from Dane Coles. Possibly the biggest item is

(02:29):
the twenty four person corporate box for the All Blacks
South Africa test in September in Wellington, donated by Sky Stadium.
So you know that's going to fetch a big number
in itself, and we've got some other cool things like
and have lunch with the All Blacks or some of
the All Blacks out the Hurricanes, some signed jerseys, golf

(02:49):
with Jordi Barrett and Christian Cullen.

Speaker 6 (02:52):
You know. So it's really cool. It's quite unique.

Speaker 5 (02:55):
We don't normally do this kind of thing, but I
think when you see something like this, you really just
want help. And sort of everybody's swung behind my mad
idea and you know, donated gifts and items and just
helped out with the marketing and every other thing.

Speaker 6 (03:13):
So yeah, it feels really good, but it's a very sad.

Speaker 5 (03:17):
Situation that we are trying to play a little part
and helping.

Speaker 4 (03:21):
It says a lot about the respect and the ad
aha that the team in the district have for for
Nui and Madiana, doesn't it.

Speaker 6 (03:29):
It does.

Speaker 5 (03:29):
Yeah, I mean that's from the sort of originate from
the Waikatou and you know this friends and Fanno up
there that are kind of blown away by what we're
trying to do.

Speaker 6 (03:39):
But you know, to be perfect honest, it's actually really
simple thing.

Speaker 5 (03:43):
We've made a few phone calls and got a few
auction items and just want to sort of do our
berth really, so you know, we've got a platform to
do it, so why.

Speaker 4 (03:52):
Not Evan people want to engage trade me, what's the title?
How do they find this option?

Speaker 5 (03:58):
If you search Hurricanes trade me, you'll you'll get to it.
And there's also a give a little page for Midiana
p s. But we've got details on our website too,
so if you can't find either of those links, just
jump on our website.

Speaker 1 (04:13):
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