A Tasmanian resident has begun a cross-country journey after being named the recipient of the 2025 NTI Motor Neurone Disease (MND) charity raffle, an event that has become a fixture in Australia’s insurance and transport sectors.
The raffle, organised by NTI, supports research into MND, a progressive neurological disorder that affects hundreds of Australians each year.
Robert Monks, based in Hobart, was selected as this year’s winner during the NTI Townsville 500 event in July.
Monks and his wife, Kylie, recently collected their prize – a Toyota Tundra hybrid utility vehicle and a New Age Manta Ray off-road caravan – from NTI’s Brisbane headquarters.
The couple plans to drive the new vehicle and caravan back to Tasmania, covering more than 2,500 kilometres.
Reflecting on the experience, Monks said: “It was an incredible feeling to slide behind the wheel of this new ute for the first time, and to think – it all came about just by helping a great cause.”
He added that the journey home would serve as a real-world test for the new equipment, with future plans for camping and exploring Tasmania.
Monks also acknowledged NTI’s ongoing commitment to supporting medical research.
“NTI does an incredible job fundraising to support MND research, and I’d like to thank them again for their ongoing commitment to such important work,” he said.
NTI’s annual MND fundraiser was launched in memory of former CEO Wayne Patterson, who died from the disease in 2018.
Since its inception, the initiative has grown to become one of the country’s largest sources of private funding for MND research.
NTI reports that all proceeds from the raffle are allocated directly to research grants.
To date, the initiative has raised close to $3 million, with this year’s campaign adding $468,000 to the total.
NTI CEO Janelle Greene commented on the widespread support for the program.
“We’re grateful that so many people around the country join us each year in the hopes of winning an exciting prize, but more importantly to work towards better treatments and a cure for Australians diagnosed with MND,” she said.
Greene also highlighted the ongoing impact of the disease.
“Each day, two lives are lost to MND in Australia and two new cases are diagnosed. We hope our fundraiser will help researchers in their quest to crack the code of MND,” she said.
The latest NTI research grant has been awarded to Dr. Lotta Oikari at the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute.
Oikari’s project will use stem cell technology to create laboratory models of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in people with MND.
The research will focus on the relationship between the build-up of TDP-43 protein – commonly found in MND patients – and damage to the BBB, which acts as a protective filter for the brain.
The project will also investigate whether restoring BBB function could present a new avenue for treatment.
Oikari, who has spent several years researching MND, said: “I’m passionate about using my expertise in stem cells to better understand neurological diseases that are difficult to treat, such as MND, with the aim of finding new treatments for these diseases.”
