A two minute marketing video on the benefits of the Men's Health Education Rotary Vehicle - a life-saver affectionately referred to as MHERV - has won local Rotary clubs joint first prize in a national competition.
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The brainchild of former Rotary District Governor Brian Coffey, the video was filmed by a local Rotarian member, features a local farmer and doctor, and was set in Morpeth.
"It has a strong local connection, although it's not one specific Rotary club," Mr Coffey said.
"When I was District Governor it meant overseeing clubs from Newcastle to Bourke - 47 clubs in all - and I wanted it to be a collective effort.
"But yes, there's no doubt it has a heavy Maitland influence.
"The person who shot the video, for example, is a local Rotary member I know who used to be a cameraman for NBN.
"And we chose Morpeth because it has that country flavour that's typical of so many country towns.
"When we go to different communities, the trip is coordinated out of Rutherford Telarah Rotary, with the various local Rotaries in each town manning the reception."
MHERV is a van - funded through fundraising activities and sponsorships - driven by a registered nurse that tours NSW and southern Queensland, particularly the more remote areas, providing free health screenings for men.
"The van has been going for quite a few years now - actually it could use an upgrade to be honest - and it does tremendous work," Mr Coffey said.
"We have statistics that show that in its time it has certainly saved lives.
"I honestly don't think the service has ever been marketed quite as well as it could have been - but that's not surprising because that's not what we do.
"So as District Governor I was in Christchurch last year watching some of the other film entries and thought, wow, we could do one on MHERV and I reckon it would be better than these.
"I knew as District Governor at the time I was in a good position to make it happen - and here we are."
And the upgrade?
"At the moment it's a caravan that's towed along. The goal is for it to become a motorhome that could also act as an office and would mean no towing."