Four charities share £12,000 from Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers

“Thanks to the generous contributions made by association members and guests, we’re delighted to once again be able to support these important charities,” said SAMW president, Frank Clark.

The four charities to receive SAMW support this year are RSABI (Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution), UK Sepsis Trust, Teenage Cancer Trust and Saving Sight in Grampian.

RSABI is a unique Scottish charity providing emotional, practical and financial support to individuals and their families across the agricultural sector including farming, crofting and growing.

“We support many hundreds of people in Scottish agriculture who are struggling to cope, at an annual cost to RSABI of around £500,000,” said RSABI’s development manager, Paul Tinson. “With no sign of a decrease in demand for our services, donations remain vitally important to allow us to keep delivering.

“RSABI has a confidential helpline (0300 111 4166) operating 7am – 11pm every day of the year. Callers should not wait for a problem to become a crisis, with support available for a wide range of issues such as money worries, illness, anxiety, stress, fuel poverty and mental wellbeing.”

The UK Sepsis Trust was founded in 2012 with the aim of ending preventable deaths from sepsis and improve outcomes for sepsis survivors. Sepsis, also known as blood poisoning, is the immune system’s overreaction to an infection or injury. It’s the third biggest killer in the UK, affecting 250,000 people every year, of which 44,000 lose their lives and 60,000 suffer permanent, life-changing after-effects.

“The money received from SAMW will go towards our ‘Streets Against Sepsis’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness and vital funds within communities by encouraging and supporting community action,” said the charity’s communications manager, Isabella Wilson. “We want everyone to learn the signs of sepsis so they can look out for their friends, families and colleagues and ‘Just Ask: Could it be sepsis?’ Together we can change the way sepsis is handled in the UK.”

Teenage Cancer Trust, which exists to make sure young people don't face cancer alone, provides world-class cancer care and support in specialist units, local hospitals and in homes across Scotland and the UK. The charity is involved at every stage, from diagnosis through treatment and after treatment.

“Every day seven young people aged 13-24 are diagnosed with cancer,” said the charity’s regional fundraiser, Vanessa Todd. “We see the young person first and the cancer patient second.

“SAMW’s donation will help as we need funding to grow our team of Clinical Nurse Specialists across Scotland, who can treat young people at local hospitals and in their own homes. Clinical Nurse Specialists will also provide support, education and development opportunities for NHS staff at local hospitals to raise awareness of the complex needs of this age group. In 2018, we are expanding our team to include four new Clinical Nurse Specialists based in Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness and Edinburgh, who will work across their wider local area.”

Saving Sight in Grampian (SSIG) was founded by the late Dr Iain Fraser in 1989 in grateful response to the treatment he received following a severe eye condition. The charity, which has already raised over £3.5m, is currently working to raise another £1.5m to further capitalise on the world-wide reputation of the Aberdeen-based SSIG research laboratory.

“The sums being raised will be directed to the recruitment and employment of additional people to enhance and expand the capabilities of our existing team,” said SSIG chairman, Michael Hastie.

“Future research will focus on inflammation and infection in conditions which could cause, or identify, the early the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s, amongst others. SAMW’s donation will be well directed in support of this work.”