The Firefighter Who Raised $20 Million for Cancer- Tony Scott

The Firefighter Who Raised $20 Million for Cancer- Tony Scott

From The Dom Harvey Podcast by Dom Harvey

May 20, 2026 · 1h 41m

About this episode

Tony Scott shares his journey and the impact of the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge in raising funds for cancer in New Zealand.

Today’s guest is one of those people who quietly makes New Zealand a better place. Tony Scott (aka Scottie) has spent more than 30 years in the fire service. And for the past 8 years he has been Crew Chief at Auckland Airport. Chances are, even if you don’t know his name, you’ve seen the impact of his work. Scottie is the man behind the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge: the iconic annual event where firefighters climb 1,103 steps in full gear to raise money for Blood Cancer New Zealand.   What started as a small idea with a handful of firefighters has now raised almost 20 million dollars for Kiwis battling cancers. And this episode is being released to coincide with the 21st anniversary of this iconic Kiwi fundraiser As well as the Sky Tower challenge, we find out who Scotty is- his early years, the stutter he had to overcome to get the job of his dreams, the emotional toll of recovering bodies and saving lives, his reaction when he was awarded a Queens Service Medal and much more. After spending a couple of hours with Scottie, you discover pretty quickly that this isn’t about publicity or recognition for him. He’s just one of those genuinely good humans who gets a…

People in this episode

Host: Dom Harvey

Guest: Tony Scott

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Blood Cancer New Zealand, Auckland Airport

Places: New Zealand

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