Oban’s Hope Kitchen celebrates £150,000 lottery cash injection
OBAN’S Hope Kitchen has been awarded a £150,000 grant from the Big Lottery Fund, which will make a ‘huge difference’, writes David McPhee.
The money, which will be distributed in three yearly instalments of £ 50,000, comes at a crucial time as the charity is in the process of relocating to new premises.
Manager Lorraine MacCormick said that Hope Kitchen applied for ‘a big grant’ around six months ago, but their application was unsuccessful.
However, the Big Lottery Fund informed them that they would rather the kitchen apply for a medium grant.
‘It’s a relief,’ Lorraine said. ‘It will make a huge difference. We still need to do fundraising things but we won’t have to find as much money. There are lots of people saying well done, which is really nice. We are just really delighted about it.’
The food bank, which feeds up to 30 people per day, has to raise around £75,000 per year to cover the running costs.
Oban Lorn and the Isles councillor Roddy McCuish, said: ‘This is fabulous news. Hope Kitchen does great work locally and it’s great to see them getting national recognition and vital funding. This is thoroughly deserved and we wish them all the best for the future.’
Big Lottery Fund Scotland chairwoman Maureen McGinn said: ‘I am delighted Hope Kitchen has been successful in securing a Big Lottery Fund grant. The funding will make a big difference where it is needed most.’
Hope Kitchen also recently raised £ 3,510 in a crowdfunding campaign, which will be used to help the organisation ‘kit out’ its new centre on Soroba Road.
Ms MacCormick added: ‘We did not make our target [£12,000], but that was fine. We set it really high, so we are still delighted with what we got. With gift aid it will be around £4,000. It’s a lot of money and it will go a long way. We need it, as we’re really busy.’
Ms MacCormick is hopeful that the award-winning charity will be settled into its new premises by early next year.
Hope Kitchen was recently chosen as the Argyll and Bute’s organisation of the year at the Third Sector Interface Awards.
The charity doesn’t just provide people with food. It also runs writing classes and provides people with information and support. However, the work that the charity carries out would be difficult without its volunteers.
Ms MacCormick said around 15 volunteers help out regularly, adding: ‘We have a real mixture of volunteers, including pupils from Oban High School.’
Frankline Gituma, 32, recently moved to Oban from Kenya. He has just started volunteering at Hope Kitchen.
‘My sister knew about it and brought me here,’ he said. ‘It’s lovely. It’s a very nice place for people to come and chat; people are very friendly and warm and they appreciate me volunteering here.
‘I hope that people continue coming here and that we can continue the spirit of Hope Kitchen. I hope that it gets help from everyone in the community. What more can I say? It’s beautiful.’