A little idea that turned into something MEGA – the Indie relief raffle fundraiser for Grampian Women’s Aid – a project I have been working on with three creative friends, Fiona of Camban Studio, Mhairi of Paper Houses Design and Rachel of Hackley.
When lock down started (what feels like about 5 years ago now) I don’t think I’ll be the only one who felt at a total loss as to where to direct my energy – events had been cancelled, projects put on hold, web sales went completely flat, and suddenly I had loads of empty time on my hands. One thing I’ve been so thankful for is all my creative pals who I’ve been chatting to daily as we all go through this together. A few of us have had a group chat since an event we did together last year, the ‘Crisis Wine’ chat – where we download all our stresses and moans, bounce ideas off each other, and also of course share the good bits too (that’s the wine part)! We had been chatting about the current situation and how we were all feeling, while on the one hand feeling a lost and worried, also being aware of really how lucky we all are to be at home, healthy and safe.
L-R Mhairi, Fiona, Rachel, (Leanh), Helen
We all felt that we we were in this privileged position of having this time on our hands and, between us, a huge network of creative contacts to reach out to for help. Could we really do something big to create positive change for people in a less fortunate situation than ourselves? That’s how the idea of a fundraising raffle came about.
As well as running her business Camban Studio, Fiona also works for RGU Robert Gordon University co-ordinating their approach to preventing gender-based violence. She is passionate about highlighting the topic and through working in this sector is acutely aware of the impact that the current crisis has had. This is why we chose to support Grampian Women’s Aid at this time.
What started out with the four of us ended up with over 50 creative makers and small businesses getting involved, donating their wares as prizes, and our initial target of £1000 was broken on day one of the raffle launched! As I’m writing this we have one week to go, and currently sitting at £7569! After running for three weeks already, we are now on the home straight and holding our breath to see if we can reach the big goal of £10,000! Wouldn’t that be something!
While the raffle has been a thrill, watching the funds creeping up every day and sharing the amazing prizes on social media, it has also been incredibly eye opening and humbling. When you see the stats on domestic violence it is truly shocking, but it’s not until you hear the real stories and learn how many women you know have at some time felt unsafe in their homes it really leaves an impact. The stories that have come out of this fundraiser will stay with me, and it has really highlighted how vital the work that Grampian Women’s Aid do. Thank you to the brave women involved with the fund raiser who shared their stories and perspectives.
So, if you haven’t entered yet, what are you waiting for? If you head to our Facebook event page you can see all the prizes that are up for grabs and our progress over the last three weeks. We would love you to donate whatever you can. Of course we understand money is tight right now so we started tickets at just £2, but if you can share the raffle with all your friends then all the better! Thanks so much for your support.
HOW TO ENTER –
1. Head to our Just Giving Page
2. Enter your donation (£2 = 1 ticket, £10 = 5 tickets etc)
3. Leave your email address in the ‘LEAVE A MESSAGE’ Box – this is so we can contact you if you win. Just giving doesn’t automatically share your info with us so this is the only way we can know how to contact you. Alternatively email a screen shot of your donation confirmation to me [email protected] if you prefer not to leave your email on the page.
4. Share with all your friends!
Just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who has entered, shared and got behind us on this fundraiser, we really are blown away by how well this has gone. Big thanks to everyone who donated prizes too – your generosity and eagerness to get involved has been a massive part of making this such a success. And also got to say it’s been a total joy working with Fiona, Mhairi and Rachel on this project – weekly zoom chats planning it all and sharing the highs of reaching the targets has been a big part of getting us through this strange time! If you would like to read more in depth about all the businesses that contributed prizes, Mhairi has put together a brilliant blog post with little interviews on us so you can ‘meet the makers’.
Women seeking support during this time should still reach out to Grampian Women’s Aid by calling 01224 593381 or emailing [email protected] or visiting http://grampian-womens-aid.com/contact-us/
Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline provides confidential information and support to anyone affected by forced marriage or domestic abuse. Phone: 0800 027 1234 (24-7 service)
Do not be afraid to call 999 in an emergency.
