The Daniel Morcombe Foundation will continue to expand its vital work of educating children across the country about personal safety, following a $300,000 donation from Golden Casket.

The Daniel Morcombe Foundation was created in 2005 by Bruce and Denise Morcombe after their 13-year-old son Daniel was abducted from a Sunshine Coast bus stop in 2003. 

Last year, we were proud to partner with the Foundation through Golden Casket, and we’re honoured to continue that support with today's donation.

The $300,000 donation from Golden Casket, part of the Lott – Australia's official lotteries, has been funded from unclaimed prize money and will be used to grow the Foundation’s child safety education programs, child safety events, and to increase the support the Foundation provides to victims of crime and families of missing persons.

Golden Casket General Manager Andrew Shepherd said he was proud to announce Golden Casket’s continued support of the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.

“Every family in Australia has a greater understanding of how we can keep our children safe thanks to the incredible and hard work of Bruce and Denise Morcombe,” he said. 

"From funding hospital infrastructure to medical research, including a recent donation to the University of Queensland's COVID-19 vaccine, we have a long track record of contributing to initiatives that support healthy and happy communities.  Our contribution to the Daniel Morcombe Foundation continues this."

The Daniel Morcombe Foundation co-founder Bruce Morcombe said the Foundation had been able to keep more children safe over the past 12 months thanks to the Lott’s sponsorship and support.

“We’ve been able to educate more kids about their personal safety and assist more victims of crime who have been physically and sexually abused,” he said. 

“In 2019, the Foundation’s National Day of Action on child safety education and awareness – Day for Daniel recorded its highest number of registrations of schools and early learning centres.  

“The target in 2020 is an all-time record of 4,000 registrations of schools and early learning centres.  This equates to over 1 million students across Australia participating in child safety education and this is all thanks to the Lott funding.”