Renfrewshire Council

Council and Renfrewshire Health and Social Care Partnership (RHSCP) colleagues from the Milldale centre joined forces on Friday 11 November to raise an impressive £960.40 for the Scottish Poppy Appeal.

Senior health and safety officer Gareth Richards spent 24 years in the armed forces and has been a Poppy Scotland area organiser for 20 years. After joining the council in 2021, Gareth decided to put his fundraising expertise to good use by organising an annual Paisley collection. He said, "The support from colleagues and the public has been fantastic. I was delighted to raise £720 in year one and even more thrilled to have increased this total to over £960 in year two".

Head of Fundraising and Learning at Poppy Scotland, Gordon Michie thanked Gareth and all the volunteers for their fantastic effort. He said, "We really appreciate them giving up their time to help the Scottish Poppy Appeal. They have clearly had a wonderful response from the public.

"Every penny raised will go towards our life-changing work with the armed forces community in Scotland, providing support with employment, finances, and mental and physical health issues. This is needed more than ever now, with many veterans and their families struggling with the cost-of-living crisis."

Some of the volunteers told us why supporting veterans and service families is a cause close to their heart:

"I have a family member who served in the armed forces and since his medical discharge he has been supported by different armed forces charities. Their help and advice has been outstanding and we will be forever grateful." - Susan Allan, facilities management manager

"My father, brother, husband and son have all served in the armed forces, so I am always keen to support this really worthwhile cause. It's also a lovely opportunity to meet and share stories with generous members of the public." - Laura Smith, economic development advisor

"I served in the Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers (REME) for 15 years and have a very strong sense of identity and belonging with those who have also served. I will continue to offer my support for as long as can." - Jason Smith, social worker

"I have family who have served in the army and feel a sense of achievement knowing that I have helped soldiers and veterans like them" - Kenny Robertson, data analysis engineer

David Denham, who works as a day care assistant at Milldale Day Centre for adults with a learning disability added, "I have served with the local Royal Engineers' unit and my wife works as a senior carer for Erskine hospital dementia unit. We both do as much as we can to support the military family and this year decided to join Gareth and his team of volunteers raising money for Poppy Scotland.

"We were also joined by Jemma McLaughlan, Johnny Miller and Christopher O'Kane who I help to support at Milldale. That was an added pleasure and they all said they thoroughly enjoyed the experience and would love to do it again."

Published on Thursday 17 November 2022