Red Rock Renewables has donated £10,000 to Cash for Kids’ Mission Christmas, helping the charity provide gifts to children who may otherwise wake up without a present on Christmas morning.
Mission Christmas is the UK’s largest Christmas gift appeal, run by Cash for Kids, a charity dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children across local communities. Around 1 in 5 children are living in poverty in Edinburgh alone and in some areas of the city, that figure is much higher. Cash for Kids work alongside local organisations to identify children at risk of not receiving any gifts to open on Christmas morning. This year, there have been applications for 23,195 local children with more currently placed on a waiting list.
Marking the third year running Red Rock has supported the campaign, its donation will fund enough gifts for around 400 children across Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife & Falkirk. Alongside this, 21 employees from across the business volunteered at Mission Christmas HQ, supporting the charity’s huge festive operation by helping to sort gifts in the warehouse.
“We’re proud to support Cash for Kids again this festive period,” said Neil McAllister, Chief Administrative Officer at Red Rock Renewables who volunteered on the day.
“Christmas should be a happy time, yet many families in our communities are struggling. Hearing about the record number of applicants this year and seeing how few gifts were left at the end of the day, really brings home how important this campaign is. We hope our donation, along with the time given by our incredible volunteers, will help bring some much-needed joy to local children.”
This year, colleagues also took part in an internal gift drive, donating a haul of toys and presents to the Mission Christmas appeal.
Cash for Kids’ Charity Manager, Vic Hendry, said: “This is the most difficult Mission Christmas we’ve ever experienced. The rising cost of living means more local families are living in poverty and as a result, we’re seeing a record number of applications for support this year. Our boxes have been empty time and again at Mission HQ, meaning we’ve had to stop packing gifts and now it’s a race against time. We are so incredibly grateful for the generous £10,000 cash donation from Red Rock Renewables as this will allow us to bulk buy hundreds of items for the age ranges we’re short for. The mass donation of presents and their fabulous volunteers have also helped us enormously and I’d like to thank every single person who has donated cash, bought a gift or volunteered during this campaign. Our mission just wouldn’t be possible without you all behind us.”
Cash for Kids works to tackle child poverty all year round. Red Rock’s latest support follows a £10,000 donation earlier in the year to the charity’s Holiday Hunger campaign, which provided meals and essentials to children during the summer holidays.
For more information on Mission Christmas and how you can support the campaign, visit www.forth1.com/mission