Community windfarm charity Point and Sandwick Trust (PST) has awarded £30,000 to Bethesda as part of their pledge to give an annual £55,000 to the care home and hospice in Stornoway.
The sum is around a fifth of what Bethesda must fundraise themselves every year and means they will no longer begin their financial years with a blank sheet.
Bethesda fundraising officer DR Macdonald said: “The further donation from them is a great encouragement to us in the ongoing work of caring for people from all over the island who benefit from the facilities that we have here, both in the hospice and the care home.”
The award “takes a lot of pressure off” the yearly £250,000 target
“This means that at the beginning of the year, instead of starting off with a blank sheet, we’ve got something to build on in the course of the year,” he said.
At the moment Bethesda is at full capacity, with 21 permanent residents -
Its turnover is £2 million with £1.3 million paid in wages to its 90 employees creating a boost to the local economy, said Mr Macdonald.
He added: “We’re possibly one of the biggest private businesses in the Western Isles with that number of staff.”
During their official visit to Bethesda on Friday to hand over the money, the representatives from Point and Sandwick Trust caught up with Rudhach Mary Macdonald, originally from Flesherin, who was in respite care.
Mrs Macdonald was full of praise for the way Bethesda staff had been looking after her during her wee holiday.
“They are marvellous,” she said. “They’re all so patient with the likes of me. From the day I came in the door, a week last Wednesday, it’s been wonderful.”
She added: “My daughter died here over a year ago and they were so good to her, it couldn’t be described. They are priceless. You couldn’t put a price on them.”
Community windfarm donation to Bethesda
5 Oct 2017
Pictured: Bethesda finance manager DR Macdonald, PST general manager Donald John MacSween, Bethesda general manager Carol Somerville and PST chairman Angus McCormack. Seated, Mary Macdonald between wind farm developer Calum Macdonald and Christina Smith from PST.