Samaritans of Orkney gifted £4,000 thanks to Stromness Academy pupils

Two Stromness Academy pupils have been successful in winning a £4,000 grant for the Samaritans of Orkney.

S3 pupils Daisy Golder and Eileen Reid volunteered to research, prepare and produce a creative product for submission to the Wood Foundation’s competition – Your Community Fund.

This year’s competition was a replacement for the annual Wood Foundation Youth and Philanthropy Initiative, which was unfortunately cut short and ended due to the on going Covid-19 crisis and the suspension of class-based learning and activities.

Both girls worked extremely hard to meet the tight deadline on top of their home learning, to produce a presentation which included edited film clips, music and quotes which Eileen's talent at film making contributed towards.

The pupils’ class teacher, Eileen Thomson said: “This new and exciting opportunity was offered to schools all over Scotland who were in a similar position to compete for the chance to win a £4,000 grant for a local charity. Daisy and Eileen quickly rose to this challenge. The girls worked very hard together, working to their strengths and quickly learning new skills to produce a very engaging presentation - putting forward a strong case in support of the Samaritans. I am very proud of them. They put in a great effort and they should be really pleased with their achievement.”

As to why they chose to represent the Samaritans of Orkney, Daisy said: "They help people with the social issues of mental health and suicide; issues that can often be overlooked, especially in a situation such as we are facing now. We are very glad the money went to the Samaritans as the charity is very beneficial to the mental health of the people of Orkney.”

Eileen added: "It was a good challenge and it was great to learn how to organise ourselves online and create a presentation that we’re proud of! I think Samaritans is a really good charity to keep in mind during current events and I’m so happy we can help.”

Samaritans of Orkney Director, Tricia Urquhart, said they had been “thrilled” to learn they were the chosen recipients.
“We were delighted to be nominated and Daisy and Eileen asked some very searching and pertinent questions about the work of our charity, and I am very pleased for them, and for Orkney Samaritans. This is a great boost to our funds especially at this time when we are unable to fundraise, but our service is much in demand. I would like to offer them our congratulations and very well done for their hard work.”