The 85th Good Friday Appeal has raised $17,445,624 for The Royal Children’s Hospital.

“The Good Friday Appeal is always overwhelmed by the support of generous Victorians,” said Anne Randall, Director of the Good Friday Appeal.

“Today, thousands of communities from across Victoria and beyond have united to show their support of this world-class hospital and we sincerely want to thank each and every person who has donated their time and money to the Appeal.

“We also want to use this opportunity to specially thank all our volunteers, tin rattlers, corporate partners, regional area managers and fundraisers, for putting together another phenomenal Good Friday Appeal.”

Randall thanked the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre for hosting the 2016 Good Friday Appeal.

“Over 80,000 Victorians joined in the fun at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, with thousands more watching the Channel 7 telecast around the state or visiting a local fundraising event,” said Randall.

Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre Chief Executive, Peter King said the venue was once again honoured to host such a large-scale event that raises important life-changing funds.

“It was an absolute delight to welcome the Victorian community through our doors today to help deliver such a wonderful result for The Royal Children’s Hospital,” King said.

This year, the rural and regional Appeal collectors raised $3,605,876 and thousands of CFA collectors around the state raised $1,763,267.45.