Yorta Yorta elder and ERH Aboriginal liaison officer Sonya Parsons led the ceremony, burning eucalyptus leaves in a coolamon before the ashes were added to the soil.
“We believe by cleansing and blessing the soil it will strengthen whatever is built there from the roots up,” she said.
Work is being done to appoint a builder, and construction of the new centre is expected to begin in July, with projected completion by November 2022.
ERH Cancer and Wellness Centre ambassador Brad Williams was diagnosed with high-grade bladder cancer last year and said the new centre would not only be a huge saving for the patient, but for family members as well.
“I’ve had immunotherapy treatment done in Bendigo and I was travelling every Thursday for six weeks; to have a cancer centre here would be very helpful,” he said.
“It’ll help immensely, saving travel to Bendigo or Melbourne for cancer treatment they could otherwise get here in Echuca.”
The $8.3 million ERH Cancer and Wellness Centre has received $7 million in Victorian and NSW state government funding.
It will be a new, modern space for cancer and dialysis patients to receive treatment, moving from their current space in an outdated aged care facility.
The new facility will improve access to consultations from haematologists, medical oncologists, nephrologists and radiation oncologists for more than 1200 patients each year.
To bring these dreams to a reality, ERH needs to raise $1.3 million. To donate, visit or contact fundraising co-ordinator Shari Butcher on (03) 5485 5087 or erh.org.au/cancerandwellnesscancerandwellness@erh.org.au
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