A charity that sends clowns into hospitals says a bequest - the first it has ever received - will make a huge difference to the service it provides.
The Clown Doctors Charitable Trust, which sends trained clowns to visit sick children and the elderly, got a $15,000 donation from a woman who had used the service before she died.
Its programme director Rita Noetzel said few people leave bequests in their wills in New Zealand, but they are a huge help for non-profit organisations.
She said charities generally apply for funding for specific things, but with this type of donation they can spend the money wherever it is needed.
