Celtic football club’s charity foundation has made a donation of £2,000 to Skye Community Response in support of their work in providing food deliveries and essential services to vulnerable households on the island.
The chief executive of the Celtic Foundation said that the whole country has been shocked at the Covid-19 outbreak at Home Farm in Portree and expressed the club’s sympathies for all the families affected.
The donation from Celtic marks the latest step in a remarkable week of fundraising for Skye Community Response.
The money raised will go towards supporting the community, coordinating the provision of vital life support services, and sourcing and delivering essential equipment throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
Last weekend Skye Camanachd had challenged players, their families, supporters, and anyone who likes a challenge, to use their daily exercise time to run or walk the equivalent distance from Lands End to John O’ Groats.
The event, embraced by all ages, proved a huge success, with 440 people taking part, with a total to date of £17,382 raised.
The target of 874 miles was easily surpassed, and over the course of Saturday’s 24 hours participants had covered a terrific total of 2338 miles –enough to go from Lands End to John O’ Groats and back again, before returning to Skye.
The Isle of Skye Celtic Supporters Club made a £600 contribution and Celtic’s Ryan Christie also backed the community effort last weekend.
In a video message sent in support of SCR, the Celtic and Scotland star said: “It’s good to know that everyone on Skye is pulling together to help people who need support at this time.
“To Celtic’s own supporters on Skye, well done for that donation to Skye Community Response.
“The virtual run from John O’ Groats to Land’s End is a great idea and I’m happy to sign up. I’ll be dedicating a couple of miles to it over the weekend and hope many others do the same to raise as much as possible.
“Skye is very much in the thoughts of every Highlander just now, so best wishes and carry on your great work”.
Now the Celtic Foundation has made its own donation of £2000 to support the work of Skye Community Response.
Celtic Foundation chief executive Tony Hamilton said: “We want to recognise both the generosity of our own supporters on Skye and also the needs of the community as a whole at this terrible time.
“The whole country has been shocked by the scale of the Covid-19 outbreak at a care home in Portree. Our sympathy goes out to all the families affected by it.
“The work being done by Skye Community Response in the face of this additional challenge, on top of all the other needs that the crisis has created, is worthy of support and the Celtic Foundation knows that this donation will be put to excellent use throughout the island.”
Ross Cowie of Skye Community Response told the Free Press: “We would like to thank Celtic FC Foundation and the Isle of Skye Celtic Supporters Club for their considerable donations and also Ryan Christie for the miles and his message of support. “