Cowboy Hats for Kate charity event exceeds expectations

The Cowboy Hats for Kate event, which runs over the June long weekend, is now in its second year.

The event honours the life and untimely death of Kate Day from brain cancer, by raising money for cancer research with a charity stock muster and surrounding activities like auctions and merchandise sales.

Kate Day discovered she had brain cancer after her horse fell while campdrafting near Gunning in 2017. Undeterred, she continued riding the next day.

When she returned home, she was sick to the point of immobility. She thought it was a concussion. But after being rushed from Junee to Wagga and then Sydney to see various doctors, she learned she had an aggressive brain tumour.

Kate fought for four years and two months, but passed away in February last year.

Last year, Cowboy Hats for Kate was able to raise just over $64,000 for The Brain Cancer Research Centre, in part through auctioning donated stud services at the event.

Anita Withers thought taking a more relaxed approach to the event this year would mean less work and probably fewer donations - but things took on a life of their own.

"It was a great weekend - great weather, we had more competitors than last year ... a lot of new faces," she said.

"I think it was a lot of word of mouth. A lot of people heard how good it was last year and wanted to come and support it this year and see what it was about.

"People just want to be on horses and chase cows."

Ms Withers said she and the family were grateful so many people had shown up to donate time, money and resources to the cause.

More than this, she said it was beautiful to see so many people at an event Kate herself would have loved.

"Everyone knows why we're there ... we've got a big banner up of John and the family, and we've got a big banner with brain cancer research," she said.

"We had music, big fires, and the atmosphere was really nice."

While the funds raised have yet to be counted, Ms Withers said it was "more than she expected", based on the fact she hadn't sought auction donations as actively this year.

The planned charity auction was a modest, and silent event, but donations continued to flow until the last minute.

The silent auction developed into a "little live auction" to accommodate the new items, and larger than expected turnout.

"A competitor from the NSW Team Yarders, Taylor Horan who's had a mullet for probably 15 years," she said.

"He agreed to do a head shave, and we raised over $1700 on that one head shave.

"Thank you to all our sponsors, and anyone who donated anything."

Ms Withers said she hopes the event will continue to grow organically in the future.

"Someone said to me 'you've created a monster'," she said.

"It's going to be an annual event - I think we'll just keep going as we are."