A ladies day event is aiming to raise thousands of pounds for a north-east children’s charity.
The Ladies do Lunch event on July 28 will raise vital cash for the ARCHIE Foundation and the Scottish Ambulance Service.
The organisers, made up of four women from the same family, were inspired to hold the event, at the King George Park in Banchory, after four young relatives were treated in the Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital (RACH).
Carol Scott first had to use the hospital when her twin granddaughters Chloe and Beth fell severely ill just weeks after being born.
The pair became unable to breathe and had to be taken to hospital by air and road ambulance.
They were treated and discharged but were admitted again after similar episodes over the next few months.
Later that year, Mrs Scott’s grandson Freddie had to be taken in after suffering from a febrile episode, a seizure brought on by fever, when he was just a baby.
All three have now made a full recovery.
And her other grandson, Harry, is currently in the hospital as he has chickenpox.
Last night, Mrs Scott – who has organised the event with her daughter Sarah Smith, sister Kate Simpson and daughter-in-law Stephenie Smith – said: “We thought we would like to give something back because we’ve used their facilities so much, including the air ambulance.
“We were just so impressed with them both, we’re really lucky to have such good services in this area.
“The tickets sold out within hours so it’s obvious people in the area understand how important the services are.”
The event will feature a lunch, pop-up shops, an auction, raffle and entertainment from a Michael Buble impersonator.
The organisers even managed to enlist Colin Slessor and Scott Chapman from the hit TV series The Mart, which follows the lives of the auctioneers at Thainstone.
Bidders could walk away with jewellery from Finnie’s Jewellers, a stay in the Marcliffe Hotel, a rally driver experience with champion Bruce McCombie and a host of other items.
The event is now a sell-out, with 350 tickets sold, but the organisers would still welcome donations, whether that is money or raffle and auction prizes.
Mrs Scott can be contacted on cazev39@sky.com
