Husband and wife Garry and Leanne Tilse both have cancer and fundraising started in earnest in December with Leonie Bowden selling teapots from the shelves of her Capitol Café before it was sold in December last year.

It culminated with $72,000 being raised on January 21 at a benefit day at Stroud Country Club.

Coordinator Jo Lyall said the money will go to the Tilse family to help them pay expenses such as travel and medical and everyday things like groceries and bills.

“It was huge, absolutely huge,” she said.

“My hope was to raise $40,000 and I am simply blown away that it was exceeded by so much.

“There had to be 600 to 700 people there on the day, it was fantastic.

“And everyone was so generous with their money and we raised $25,000 from the auction alone.

“Little raffles were bringing in $5000 . . . it was phenomenal.”

Mrs Lyall said the husband and wife or male and female partnered teams in the firewood splitting competition was very entertaining and everyone wanted to be in it.

“We had a calcutta to auction off the teams and then the finalists were then auctioned off.

“We put aside money for the winning teams but they donated it back to the benefit.

“The face painter we had was the best I have seen and the kids looked great.

“We had lots of comments that there was something for everyone so we are pleased it was so successful.”

In 1987 Garry Tilse, 51, was diagnosed with testicular cancer and received radiotherapy therapy.

In October last year he was diagnosed with a large intrusive sarcoma in his right hip which doctors believe may be caused by the radiotherapy therapy.

Garry started trial chemotherapy treatment in November and was later sent to John Hunter Hospital for emergency surgery on a blocked bowel.

The surgery was successful, but Garry had several complications. He is still receiving treatment for the sarcoma.

In April this year his wife Leanne was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a right breast mastectomy.

The 45-year-old had two separate tumours which meant two different chemotherapy treatments that will last six months which she is currently receiving weekly.

Between both Garry and Leanne’s different treatments neither has been able to work.