Gordon’s appeal hits £100k

Exclusive: Campaign to save military museum still needs more donations

A fundraising campaign to save a north-east military museum from closure has raised £100,000 in the space of just a month.

The Gordon Highlanders Museum in Aberdeen is the city’s only five-star attraction and honours the iconic north-east regiment.

However, it has been hit hard by the oil and gas downturn in the city and, despite enjoying growing visitor numbers, has experienced a drastic cut in the number of corporate events, with bookings for conferences, training days and dinners falling by nearly 60% during the past three years.

In May, the museum launched a new drive in an effort to raise £300,000 in three years and preserve the Viewfield Road attraction for future generations.

And, following the highprofile appeal launch, generous benefactors have dug deep and already raised £100,000 of the total.

It’s understood there have been a significant number of anonymous donations and Aberdeen Journals Ltd pumped in £10,000 to the drive.

Last night, museum chief executive Bryan Snelling hailed the total as “humbling”, but argued there was “still a long way to go”.

Last week, the city council approved a motion asking officers to investigate any means by which the local authority could support the fundraising appeal.

Mr Snelling added: “We’ve been extremely humbled by the response and offers of help received since launching the fundraising campaign.

“The wonderful support and £10,000 donation from the Press and Journal was a great ‘kick-start’ to the campaign whilst the support of local MSPs and the submission of a motion from Aberdeen City councillors proposing help was a huge bonus.

“However, we still welcome more donations including small, yet regular donations to help us achieve our target of £300,000.”

Hazlehead, Queens Cross and Ashley councillor John Cooke raised the motion to the authority, arguing that putting council cash towards the appeal was “an investment” in the city’s tourism offering. Last night, he said he was “delighted” with the new total, adding: “To hear that the museum is already a third of the way towards its total is really fantastic news.

“We need top tourist attractions in the city to make sure we make the most of this market as we diversify our economy.”

‘HUMBLED’: Gordon Highlanders Museum chief executive Bryan Snelling is delighted by the response so far, raising a third of their total