Auckland's Herne Bay House will receive a record $45,000 from this year's Heroic Gardens garden tour event, up from $35,000 last year. Heroic Gardens Chair Geoffrey Marshall says gloriously fine weather bought out increased numbers of visitors, with one of the 21 open gay and lesbian-owned gardens registering 1,800 visitors. Included in those visitors were a straight Christchurch couple who saw the tour last year and flew up especially for this year's tour and two gay men from the UK who pre-planned their holiday trip to include Heroic Gardens, says Marshall. Herne Bay House is a respite centre where people with HIV and their caregivers can be supported through the stresses of living with HIV/AIDs or caring for someone with the disease.
Credit: GayNZ.com News Staff
First published: Sunday, 23rd February 2003 - 12:00pm