THE coronavirus pandemic may have put a stop to the 2020 Leeton SunRice Festival, but it failed to halt the Ambassador Quest.
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A video conference with each of the quest entrants on Easter Thursday night had Liz Munn named the 2020 Ambassador, while Tamara Bartram took out the Highest Fundraising Ambassador title.
Fellow entrants Belinda Mahalm, Vicki Hester and Bianca Iannelli were all congratulated by Leeton SunRice Festival director Julie Axtill for their hard work and fundraising throughout the quest, which led to more than $72,000 being raised for the community.
Ms Munn was raising money for her Country Women's Association charity, as well as her committee - the Leeton Phantoms Rugby Union Club.
"I was really quite shocked when I was announced as the 2020 Ambassador," she said.
"It was a really big surprise, but it is a big honour. I thought all of the entrants deserved to win.
"I really am so grateful to the community for getting behind me and supporting me.
"I don't have any family down here, so I really had to rely on my friends and footy club to help me out.
"It was really amazing to be part of it all."
Typically the Ambassador Quest entrants play a big role in the SunRice Festival, not just holding fundraisers in the lead up to the Easter long weekend, but there is always a special night to recognise their efforts and announce the winners.
With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the 2020 festival to be cancelled, it is hoped there will be an event when its feasible to celebrate the efforts of all of the entrants.
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Miss Bartram, who was raising money for Leeton Can Assist and her Leerton and District Bowling Club committee, was also shocked when she was announced as the Highest Fundraising Ambassador.
"I was always wondering to myself 'am I doing enough?', 'do I need to be doing more fundraisers?', so I was pretty surprised," she said.
"It was such an amazing experience to be part of and I have really learned a lot from it.
"All of the entrants have done such a great job."
