What do you get if you combine some bright-coloured paint, fetching yellow gloves, an old bathtub, and eight enthusiastic Scottish Fuels colleagues? Well, we’ll tell you…
At the end of September, eight of our colleagues took on the challenge of giving the Aberlour Children’s Charity headquarters a much-needed makeover! As part of the Hands in the Community volunteering initiative, the team braved the Falkirk elements to make a real difference to the children and families of their local community.
Aberlour Children’s Charity do some amazing work in the local community, helping children and families affected by poverty, substance abuse, and disability (among other things) in the local areas, including on the doorstep of our Larbert office. In fact, the impact that Aberlour have in the community, and the difference they can make in disadvantaged children’s lives was a large factor in why the team voted to support them on their volunteering day.
Naturally, the elements played their part, and although it was largely dry throughout the day, the wind made things a little challenging, and a tad chilly, but that certainly didn’t stop the team rejuvenating the Family Service garden, making it a little brighter and more welcoming for whoever might need to use it.
While the weeding, cleaning, sorting, and moving garden furniture was an important part of their task list, it’s the painting and stencilling that’s making the headlines! Once-dingy tyre-planters were transformed into explosions of bright pink and blue colour; little cute cobbles were given similar treatment and dotted around the place for little hands to find. Even coat racks, shelves, and other furniture got the same treatment – nothing escaped the creative touches of our volunteers.
The team really embraced the spirit of the task and put their hearts and souls into helping make a difference to those who need our support the most. One of our colleagues, Beatrice, said that ‘it was very rewarding to contribute to making the place somewhere that the people supported by the charity would feel more comfortable and welcome. We all gained a better understanding of the type of work the charity does after speaking with the staff. The day was definitely worth the effort that was put in by the team.’
The work that the team have done highlights how fulfilling and impactful volunteering in local communities can be. In fact, through the funding and volunteering to date, we have directly helped over 58,000 people in need. Well done to everyone who has devoted their time and effort to these good causes – long may it continue.
