ALEXANDRA Hills disability support worker Harry Bate is preparing to travel 6000km across Queensland for sick and disadvantaged children – and for a cause close to his own family.
Mr Bate, 27, will take part in the Variety Bash 2026 as a support vehicle driver for the AW518 Austin Powers team from Redcliffe.
The charity rally left Innisfail on August 17 and will take a circuitous route across the State to finish in Gladstone on August 27.
It will be Mr Bate’s second Variety Bash after he joined last year’s event as a passenger in a 1987 Ford Falcon driven by Logan pair Tammy Quire and Christ Staff.
“It was an amazing experience. It was heart-warming,” he said.
“When I had the opportunity to go back again, I grabbed the chance.”
This year, Mr Bate will enter his 2021 Mitsubishi Triton alongside friend Oliver Walters, 18, of Mackay.
The pair will provide mechanical support to teams along the way.
“We may not be mechanics, but we both know our way around a car,” Mr Bate said. “Oliver and I are two young blue-collar workers trying to make a difference and bring an impact to sick and disadvantaged children by bringing much-needed funds and equipment to where it’s needed.”
Mr Bate works at My Horizon, providing horticultural supervision as a disability support worker.
But his motivation for joining the Bash is deeply personal.
His twin brother Jordan underwent a liver transplant 10 years ago, giving Mr Bate first-hand insight into the challenges faced by sick children and their families.
“I had a sick twin brother. Jordan had a liver transplant 10 years ago, so I know all about Variety and how it supports sick and disadvantaged children,” he said.
Jordan is now a registered nurse at Princess Alexandra Hospital – the same hospital where he received his transplant.
For Mr Bate, one of the most memorable parts of the Variety Bash is visiting children in rural communities and seeing the impact of the funds raised.
“The money raised by these rallies helps get equipment for these kids,” he said.
Mr Bate is aiming to raise $10,000 and had already reached about $8500.
Donations to the AW518 Austin Powers team can be made at varietybashqld.com.au/aw-518.
