Johnston Smillie Charitable Trust Newsletter May 2025

Making a Local Impact – Together

Since launching the Johnston Smillie Charitable Trust in 2020, after many years of supporting larger charities, our mission has been clear: to make a meaningful difference to smaller, local charities and community groups that often go under the radar.

As we begin a new year of fundraising, we’d love to share how we raise funds, and more importantly, the great causes we’ve been able to support thanks to your generosity. Over the past year we were proud to be able to donate over £25,000 to a range of inspiring local organisations. You’ll find more details below.

We’re always looking to connect with new groups doing great work in our communities. If you’re involved with a small charity or local initiative that could benefit from our support, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

We also welcome any help with our fundraising efforts – whether that’s donating a raffle prize, making a contribution to the Trust or joining us at one of our events. Every bit of support helps us do more.

We’d be delighted to hear from you If you’d like to get involved in our future fundraising activities. Our events are always open to clients, contacts. friends and family and we’d love to see you there.

With thanks and best wishes

The Johnston Smillie Team

Donations made in the last year

We were delighted to be able to make the following donations in the last year:-

Tummies Not Trash £2,820
Edinburgh Headway Group £1,000
The Edinburgh Christmas Dinner Appeal £2,000
Calderglen Early Learning Centre £301
Kings Park Primary School PTA £1,000
Sporting Memories Scotland £1,000
Corstorphine Community Centre £2,000
Friends of Forthview £1,000
Balanced Horizons £5,000
Murrayfield Dementia £1,000
West Edinburgh Community Support £750
Kids Love Clothes £1,000
Compass Therapy Centre £2,000
Granton Goes Greener £2,000
Beach Wheelchairs £1,600
Therapets £1,000

Ladies Afternoon Tea Event

We were thrilled to host our annual Ladies Afternoon Tea in the stunning surroundings of Greyfriars Hall at the Virgin Hotel, Edinburgh.

It was a wonderful afternoon filled with laughter, delicious food and fantastic entertainment. Guests enjoyed a relaxed and elegant atmosphere while supporting a great cause. Thanks to the generosity of everyone who attended – and those who took part in our raffle and auction – we raised over £7,000 for local charities.

We’re already busy planning this year’s event and would love to hear from you if you’re interested in taking a table. It’s a fantastic opportunity to enjoy a special afternoon while making a real difference in our community.

To register your interest, please contact Rona Burns.

Sportsman’s Lunch Event

For over 25 years, our annual Sportsman’s Lunch has been a highlight of our fundraising calendar. Held at the welcoming Turnhouse Golf Club for many of those years, the event brings together around 120 guests for an afternoon of great food, entertaining speakers and generous giving.

Last year’s lunch raised over £8,000 in support of local charities – an incredible result made possible by our fantastic attendees.

This year’s event is scheduled for 28 November 2025. If you’re interested in booking a table, please get in touch with Rona Burns.

Quiz Night Event

Our annual charity quiz night at the Edinburgh Sports Club is always a lively and competitive evening, hosted by the ever-knowledgeable Colin Cruikshank.

With over fifteen teams of four taking part, the night is packed with general knowledge, music and picture rounds – all in the name of charity. Last year’s champions were the team from iMultiply and together we raised over £2,500.

It’s a fantastic night out and another great way to support local causes.

Fundraising

Throughout the year, the Johnston Smillie team get involved in a variety of fun ways to raise funds for our Charitable Trust. These include Football Stakes, a Grand National Sweepstake, seasonal Easter, Halloween and Christmas hamper raffles and a festive Christmas Jumper Competition.

Many team members also contribute through regular monthly donations.

We are very grateful to Rona Burns, who makes up the beautiful hampers for the raffles in her own time, the donations we receive for these and the funds raised by the team.

Thank You

We would like to thank everyone who has supported our charity as it is due to your kindness and generosity that we have been able to help so many great causes.

We would love to hear from you if you are involved in any charities or other local organisations for the benefit of the community, that we could help, or if you could donate any prizes for our event raffles or would simply like to make a donation.

Please contact us if you would like more information.