NEWS

You may have heard it announced on BBC Radio Orkney this Tuesday ( World Mental Health Day ) or read it in this week's edition of The Orcadian that the Edrington group's annual epic fundraiser raised £327,000 this year! The Orkney Blide Trust were chosen as one of the charities this year so we have been donated £163,500!!

This is going to fund another year of our young people's project, build a new space in the garden to allow us to accommodate more meetings and therapeutic and creative groups as well as modifications to make the building more accessible to those with additional needs!! There are just not enough thank yous and we are so grateful for the support!!

EPIC boost for Orkney Blide Trust
Orkney Blide Trust is set for a six-figure funding boost as a result of an Edrington charity ‘Ride n’ Stride’ fundraising effort.
A team of 73 employees of Edrington – owners of Orkney’s Highland Park distillery – cycled 210km over two days. The team of cyclists including Nick Lovick, a Blide Trust member, set out on Edrington Epic ride from Glasgow’s Clydeside on 31st August, making their way up through the lochs and mountains of The Trossachs before heading back the following day from Arrochar to Glasgow along the Banks of Loch Long.
At the same time, another 96 Edrington Stride walkers put their walking boots on to cover the 30km Three Lochs Way challenge from Helensburgh to Arrochar, where they joined their cycling colleagues.
Both teams were backed by a support squad of Edrington colleagues equipped for every eventuality, from suncream and blister plasters to midge repellent and even a defibrillator.
The Ride n’ Stride raised a combined total of over £90,000, which has been triple-matched by Edrington and its principal shareholder, The Robertson Trust. This results in an incredible £327,000 to be split equally between two charities, Glasgow Refugee charity Refuweegee and The Orkney Blide Trust.
The Blide Trust currently provides a range of support services for almost 200 Blide ‘members’ in Orkney who experience mental ill health and over the past year have also supported over 100 other local people through their Distress Brief Intervention programme and counselling services.
Craig Nisbet, Purposeful Blide Coordinator for the Blide Trust said that they have been astounded by the extent of the fundraising challenge. “The money raised by Edrington’s Giving More team is going to make a huge difference to our service. The funds will allow us to build a garden room that we can use to host support meetings and create a space for therapeutic art and wellbeing projects and will also allow us to extend our project for Young People (age 16-25) for another year.”
Fiona Cockburn, Edrington’s Head of Giving More was part of the EPIC cycle team. “This is the fourth EPIC Europe Ride since 2015 and it’s been amazing to see how these have taken off around the world. From Asia Pacific to Europe, the Americas and the Dominican Republic, colleagues have come together through cycling to support causes in their communities that are close to their heart. The Orkney Blide Trust was nominated by the Highland Park Distillery team and it’s been truly inspiring to learn more about the Blide Trust and the support that they provide to so many people in the Orkney community.”