Hunter Honda, in High Street, Maitland, donated an eight-seater van to the organisation on Monday from the Honda Foundation.

The foundation draws on voluntary contributions from Honda’s Australia-wide network of dealers, from Honda Australia itself and from private donors and

provides grants to charities, humanitarian bodies and victims of natural disaster.

The Honda Heroes van is the first of its kind in the Hunter Valley.

The car will enable the volunteers to drive Dungog residents diagnosed with a life-limiting illness to and from the Mater Hospital and further afield.

Previously the 10 volunteers had to use their own vehicles and pay for their own petrol when transporting clients.

Dungog Shire Palliative Care management committee president Margaret Jones said the volunteers could travel up to 100km to help sick people.

“We travel as far away as Lostock and in to the Mater Hospital,” she said.

“We provide a free service to all of our clients and their families and help them get to their chemotherapy and to all of their appointments.

“With the new car we will determine which volunteers get to use it based on the needs of their clients.”

Mrs Jones thanked the foundation for providing a car to the rural area.

“We are such a remote area, so it’s a huge thing for the foundation to do,” she said.

“Because we are so far out they wont be getting much publicity from us so they are just doing it because they know we can make a difference.”