Two charities which support babies, children and their families are to share a donation of £8,000, the proceeds from a glittering Aberdeen awards ceremony.
The Archie Foundation and Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS) will each receive £4,000 from BWC Aberdeen, which held its second annual Athena Awards at the Chester Hotel on Friday, November 15.
Business Women Connections Aberdeen (BWC), a franchise of Business Women Scotland, aims to empower women entrepreneurs by providing support, resources and a vibrant community where they can connect, build relationships, grow and thrive.
More than 250 guests attended the awards lunch for an afternoon of food, drinks and entertainment from Take That tribute act Rule the World, with money raised through a raffle and games.
The Athena Awards saw accolades handed to successful women working in fields including law, property, finance and PR, marketing and communication.
Karen Smith, owner of BWC Aberdeen and host of the awards, said it was important to give back and support the work of its two chosen charities.
“This year’s talented finalists and winners represent the very best of what women in business can achieve and the event was a fantastic opportunity to honour their hard work, passion and contributions,” she said.
“We are thrilled to have raised so much for our charities of the year, The Archie Foundation and CHAS. As a membership organisation which supports women in business, many of our members can really relate to the wonderful work both Archie and CHAS do to support families when they need it most.”
Left to right: Karen Smith, owner of BWC Aberdeen; Archie trustee Carol Munro; CHAS trustee Gillian Donald; CHAS community fundraiser Kim Scott; and Archie chief executive Paula Cormack.
Archie has helped children and families across the north of Scotland for 24 years, funding specialist roles and projects at Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital, Highland Children’s Unit, Tayside Children’s Hospital and Dr Gray’s Hospital, Elgin.
It provides financial and emotional support, including parent accommodation and help for children who have suffered a bereavement, through Archie’s Child Bereavement Service.
Chief executive Paula Cormack said the donation would be gratefully received.
“We are so grateful to Karen and her team at BWC Aberdeen for their amazing support of Archie and our partner charity CHAS. Our organisations share a common purpose in supporting children and their families who face challenging and in some cases life-limiting health conditions,” she said.
“Archie and CHAS have worked in close partnership for a number of years, however it was the connection made between BWCA ambassadors Carol Munro and Gillian Donald, who also happen to be trustees of Archie and CHAS, that led to this amazing joint fundraising approach for the two charities.”
CHAS provides unwavering palliative care to children who may die young and their families. The CHAS team are there at every step to support families on this hardest of journeys.
The charity supports young people from pre-birth to the age of 21, and their whole family, in hospices, children’s homes and hospitals.
Chief executive Rami Okasha said: “We are really delighted. I’d like to say a huge thanks to the whole team at BWC Aberdeen for their generosity. This will make a huge difference and I am delighted that CHAS and Archie can share in this support. The CHAS nurses, doctors and volunteers in Aberdeen support families right across Grampian going through the hardest thing imaginable, but we couldn’t do this without the support of so many people.”
Visit www.archie.org/getsupport/ for more information about the practical, financial and emotional support available from The Archie Foundation or https://www.chas.org.uk/ for details of the support provided by CHAS.