NEWSLETTER  •  SPRING 2024

Anna's News

We are nine weeks into our 2024 programme, and so far we have hosted groups from the Highlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perthshire, and West Lothian. The first couple of months of the program felt wintry. The sea was icy, but that did not stop us from getting in the water during visits to our local beach. However, it feels like summer has arrived now, and the groups have been enjoying playing in the garden and taking warmer dips in the sea. I hope this spell of warm weather continues, although poor weather does not put us off at HopScotch! 

We have added Ardgour Alpaca and Goat Experience to our activities. We were disappointed that the extremely popular Darach Croft, which was such a success last year, closed. We were eager to find another activity where groups could spend time with animals, and we visited the farm for the first time this week. The children loved feeding the chickens, meeting the alpacas, playing with the goats, and brushing the Shetland ponies. Many did not want to leave because they were having such a wonderful time. 

Animals have a calming effect on young people, and I have noticed this when we go horse riding in Oban. We could not visit the stables much last year due to the ferry being out of service, so it has been wonderful being back at the stables this year. A few children this year felt extremely nervous before horse riding, but it is incredible to watch them overcome their fear and give it a go. You can see their confidence grow just in that time at the stables, and I always hope they will remember how it felt to overcome their nerves and try something challenging. 

Funding News

We have had some wonderful fundraising and donations recently, which it's great to be able to share with you.

If you follow us on social media (our links are at the bottom of the newsletter) then you might have seen the incredible feat undertaken by Grant Lindsay back in March. Grant ascended to Everest Base Camp, and in the process raised £15107.35, making him the individual to have personally raised the largest-ever amount in our 25 year history!

We were honoured to have been chosen by the Watch Committee at Blackhall St Columba's Church as their charity of the year for 2023. Throughout the year they raised money through various fundraising events, including the Christmas Fair and Craft Coffee Morning. In January the committee presented us with the fantastic sum of £10000! Special thanks go to Lynn Bunney and Frances Douglas for their incredible hard work and support.

We currently have a brilliant team from Republic of Media who are fundraising for HopScotch by undertaking the epic challenge of climbing the Skyline route through the Pentland Hills. This route includes 15 of the highest Pentland peaks, amounting to 16 miles of climbing across a 6,200 incline. At the time of writing on 31st May the team will actually be tackling the route, and we know you will want to join us in cheering them on!  You can also cheer them on through their JustGiving link here - every penny will support the ongoing work of HopScotch.

We Are 25 Years Old!

This year we will be recognising and celebrating 25 years of giving some of our most vulnerable kids a break from challenging and stressful home environments.  We’re keeping our plans under wraps for now, but keep your eyes peeled for what, when and how you can get involved.  This is a big milestone for HopScotch and we want to shout about it from the rooftops – and we’re going to need your help!

In the meantime….if you would like to support our 25^th Anniversary, there are so many ways to do it.  You can…

-        Grow our supporter list! Forward this email on to 5 of your friends/family and ask them to join our mailing list.

-        Grow our social media following! Follow us on social media – you’ll find us on twitter/X, Instagram, Facebook and Linkedin 

-        Grow our reach! Share our posts on social media and encourage others to do the same

-        Grow our funding! And of course you can also make a donation to HopScotch here

Do you have any memories from the past quarter of a century of HopScotch (the ones above are from our own archive, but we know there are more out there!)?  Get in touch and let us know! 

...And Finally

HopScotch has moved office! We were in the Silverknowes office in Edinburgh for 18 years, but all good things must come to an end and so HopScotch has relocated to an office space elsewhere in Edinburgh which better reflects our current needs. Roberta and Alison had to undertake the gargantuan task of packing up the office along with 18 years of charity memories that had accumulated there. Now they are making the new office a home, but in the meantime you can see in the photo above the mixed emotions about exchanging the old for the new!