Staff at Forth Ports have provided a vital cash boost to this year’s Cash for Kids Mission Christmas campaign in Edinburgh.
The company was scheduled to become a co-sponsor at this year’s Cash for Kids Sparkle ball, but the cancellation of the event due to COVID-19 restrictions, failed to stop team members from digging deep for young people in need of support.
The company has handed over a cheque for £2,000 to Charity Manager Victoria Hendry as a ‘pre-pledge’. Meanwhile, staff at Forth Ports bases in Leith, Rosyth and Grangemouth have already raised more than £400 through their own Just Giving page and are promising to raise even more and help as many children as possible throughout December.
Cathy Ilett, Learning and Development Manager at Forth Ports, said: “We’re delighted that Forth Ports has the opportunity to continue to contribute to Cash for Kids and support children and young people affected by poverty, abuse, neglect, life-limited illness and those who have additional needs.
“We know that our pre-pledge will go directly into having a positive impact in their lives and our community. We take pride in our role within the community and our people fully embrace the opportunity to participate in fundraising throughout the year, but especially at Christmas.”
In addition to fundraising, staff members from Forth Ports have volunteered to assist with the herculean effort of collecting and sorting the thousands of gifts that have started arriving at Mission Christmas HQ in Edinburgh’s Gyle Shopping Centre.
Victoria Hendry, Charity Manager at Radio Forth’s Cash for Kids, said: “Last year, through a combination of gift drop-offs and cash donations, more than £1.1 million worth of toys were handed out in Edinburgh and the east of Scotland, helping a staggering 25,386 children.
“COVID-19 really hampered our fundraising drives throughout 2020 and we were worried Mission Christmas might not be able to go ahead. Thankfully, its all systems go, with a raft of additional safety measures in place.
“We wouldn’t be able to do any of this if it wasn’t for the support of volunteers and businesses like Forth Ports. In addition to offering an amazing initial donation, they’re helping us with the huge operational task of ensuring no child in the region wakes up on Christmas Day without a gift. We’re eternally grateful to them.”
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