The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
City harbour gives £30,000 for charities
Aberdeen Harbour has donated £30,000 to charities and community groups supporting individuals and families through the cost of living crisis.
Cfine, Inchgarth Community Centre, Big Noise Torry and the Denis Law Legacy Trust were each given a donation through the harbour’s support-all programme.
Bob Sanguinetti, chief executive of Aberdeen Harbour, visited Cfine’s headquarters yesterday to meet representatives of the charities and discuss how the money would be used.
He said it was “humbling” to hear the challenges people in the city are facing on a day-to-day basis.
Two awards of £10,000 were given to Cfine and Big Noise Torry, while Inchgarth Community Centre and the Denis Law Legacy Trust were awarded £5,000 each.
Fiona Rae, chief executive of Cfine, said the service is now seeing up to 100 people a day at their foodbank with deliveries also continuing.
The port’s donation will go towards keeping the foodbank stocked with food as well as providing fruit and veg bags to beneficiaries.
Inchgarth Community Centre, who also help to feed local families, said the donation from the harbour was “phenomenal” at a time of such need.
The centre has decided to put the money towards upgrading their tables and
seating areas, as well as buying new games consoles, for everyone to enjoy the space.
Lorna Carruthers, head of centre at Big Noise Torry, said they are “really excited” to have the opportunity to expand the selection of instruments they can offer to the children and young people in Torry thanks to the funding.
The Denis Law Legacy
Trust will use the donation to buy more sports equipment for the young people they support through Streetsport.
The harbour – which will soon be known as the Port of Aberdeen – has donated more than £600,000 to community groups since 2016.
Mr Sanguinetti said: “Covid and the cost of living crisis have created a perfect storm for those
most vulnerable in our communities.
“So it’s very humbling and also from the harbour perspective it’s satisfying to see that we can support, albeit in a small way, the work that these four charities are doing.”
The P&J is also working to tackle food poverty by raising awareness of the help that is available right across the north of Scotland.