When I launched my first fundraising campaign three months ago, I was hoping to collect a few hundred pounds.
So imagine how over the moon I was when we hit the final total of £1,700.
The plan was to sell yellow “Sunny Dundee” sunglasses, inspired by the city-wide summer campaign of 2018.
And the aim was to raise money for the Archie Foundation, which works to transform the experience of children and young people in the Tayside Children’s Hospital at Ninewells.
It’s something I’ve wanted to do for quite some time. And the end result was so much better than I expected.
Having the Dundee Culture audience base meant I could reach thousands of people and the first set of sunglasses I ordered sold out within a hour of the launch.
So, I ordered a second set. And then they were all snapped up in the first hour too.
I decided to make the third batch reservation-only, as that would allow me to make sure everyone who wanted a pair got a pair.
That show of strength – and the support from people who helped throughout the campaign – is something I will always cherish.
It wasn’t all plain sailing. Posting sunglasses one by one to buyers all around the world isn’t exactly straightforward. But it was a great learning experience for me.
Archie Foundation benefited from Sunny Dundee success
After selling the final batch, I was looking forward to the next part, which was handing the cheque in to the Archie Foundation.
The presentation took place on Friday. It felt quite fitting that it happened during the week of the 75th anniversary of the NHS.
It was a little strange for me to be going back to a place that has played such a large part in my life.
The NHS, and by extension, the Tayside Children’s Hospital, did so much for me when I was growing up with cerebral palsy. There were countless operations and regular visits for physiotherapy.
It’s a long time since I was last there and it looked completely different last week.
You wouldn’t think that it was a hospital, thanks to the incredible work that has been done – much of it with the help of the Archie Foundation – to make it welcoming for children.
It will soon be 10 years since I started Dundee Culture.
I have had amazing support over that time. And I wanted to mark the occasion by giving something back to the community and giving something back to the place which helped me so much as a youngster.
I couldn’t have done it without the support of everyone who bought glasses and, of course, the amazing staff at the Archie Foundation, who were brilliant in supporting me throughout the campaign.
It was an experience I’ll look back on with pride and one I will never forget.
