Happy Campers

Just over a week ago, With Kids packed our bags and headed to Auchengillan Outdoor Centre for a fun-filled weekend of camping, sponsored by the astounding efforts of Andrew Muirhead & Son Ltd.

Colin Wade, the Managing Director of Andrew Muirhead & Son, walked the West Highland Way and raised £7000 for With Kids, which was an amazing response and was mostly raised by staff, family and friends of the company.

To honour that generosity, we were delighted to name the camping trip as sponsored by them.

We hired a cabin out in the woods so people could choose whether to camp or sleep in dorms, and when we arrived at Auchengillan Outdoor Centre on the Friday, we were greeted with sunshine and spectacular views across trees and fields.

Being so isolated meant the kids were free to run around and explore safely, which was ideal as they did a huge amount of running around!

We had 24 kids so there was a lot of excitement and very little sleep on the first night, followed by some very early morning rises on Saturday morning. 

We had some fairly tired grumpy parents, kids and staff on Saturday, but everyone quickly cheered up with activities including climbing, go karts, grass sledges, waterwalkerz and orienteering, as well as a BBQ!

Thankfully, the sun shone throughout, and as everybody had had such an exhausting day, they were all asleep early on Saturday night... hooray!

Many of the families faced new challenges and different experiences, but everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves and said how good it had been meeting new people and trying different things.

These are just some of the stand out quotes from the weekend:

"Me and the kids absolutely loved it. We've had a brilliant time."

"It was great meeting new friends and spending quality time with the kids." 

"Watching the kids have fun and having new & scary experiences was great."

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Once Upon A Time - A Real Fairytale

As many people are no doubt aware, With Kids' ambassador Robert Carlyle is currently starring in the hit American fantasy-drama, Once Upon A Time.

Robert's involvement with our charity was highlighted by members of Once Upon A Fan, the major online resource for fans of the series, who then decided to help with fundraising.

In an incredible real life fairytale for With Kids, they have, to date, raised £3,475 of a £5,000 target.

As if that wasn't enough, Once Upon A Fan are running a With Kids charity auction from Monday 24th September to Sunday 30th September 2012.

Pieces for auction will include jewellery, original fan art pieces, rare autographed posters, journals, Emmy DVDs and lots more.

The final, ultimate auction for the ‘chipped cup’ from Skin Deep, signed by Robert and Emilie de Ravin, will take place on the 30th September.

Gareth Hughes, the founder of Once Upon A Fan, said: “The support we have received from all over the world has just been incredible. It has blown me away. Not just in terms of donations, but the kindness shown.”

In our second guest blog post, Gareth delves into his past and explains why With Kids are so close to his heart.

Every Fairytale has a Happy Ending

I became aware of With Kids through fans of Once Upon A Time, who recommended watching the videos that Robert had done. 

I could really relate to the difficulties that disadvantaged families go through and the idea that everybody deserves a chance, or a happy ending.

I grew up in a very poor part of Merseyside on a council estate where chances in life seemed limited. 

Early on, I made a conscious decision that I could do well in spite of the barriers that society sometimes places on people.

I went to university and I am now a manager of a brain injury unit in Cheshire.

I can relate so much to what With Kids are trying to do because my mother and father never had that kind of support.

We were lucky in the sense of having a local community of neighbours that pulled together and supported each other, but nothing like With Kids existed.

So, when I learned about With Kids and what they do, it was just instinctive, as the fan site grew in popularity, that we could use this huge following to do some real good.

My life could have gone down a very different path so the idea of building resilience and self esteem in children from a young age is so important to me, so that they find pride in themselves and achieve their goals, however big or small those goals are.

That's why I love what With Kids are doing.

The love is mutual Gareth. The love is mutual.

If you would like to submit an item for the Once Upon A Fan With Kids auction, contact Gareth at gareth@onceuponatimefans.co.uk

You can donate to With Kids, via Once Upon A Fan's Just Giving page.

If you would like to follow in Gareth's footsteps and write a guest blog post for With Kids, please email s.blair@withkids.co.uk with your ideas and suggestions.

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Diane Caron - Making Dreams Come True

Although With Kids is only a small charity based in the east end of Glasgow, the work that we do has resonated with people across the globe.

Thanks to our ambassador, Robert Carlyle's starring role in fairytale drama, Once Upon A Time, a group of his fans decided to get involved and help raise much needed funds. 

One of those fans is American author Diane Caron, who is donating 50% of profits from her book, Clams in Cups: Legends of the Heart to With Kids over the next year.

In the first With Kids' guest blog post, Diane discusses why a charity in Glasgow has captured her heart.

Magic, Dreams and Fairytales

Having had a love of fairytales since childhood, I was drawn to Once Upon a Time from the very beginning.

At a time in my life when I felt there would be no happy endings, it gave me hope that the curse could be broken and that magic in my life was possible again.

I discovered actors I had never seen before and was fascinated by Robert Carlyle’s portrayal of the infamous character of fairytale lore, Rumpelstiltskin.

In my search to learn more about Mr. Carlyle's previous work, I found the interview he had done with With Kids, which captured my heart. His interview was so heartfelt, especially when he spoke about the children and families, and of his father.

I was inspired by his relationship with his father, the love he had for him, the care and sacrifices that were made, and how his father supported him unconditionally and without question in his quest to be an actor.

His father encouraged him to do what was in his heart, which I feel is the key that opens the magic door to the life we are all meant to have.

The interview and With Kids' work resonated with me beyond words. I have always wanted to be involved with organisations that support children and Mr Carlyle’s interview inspired me to move forward to find a way I could help.

After this, I started seeking out information about With Kids, as well as following the Once Upon a Time fan sites, and noticed that people were undertaking various fundraising efforts.

It was then that I decided to donate 50% of all profits from the sale of my book, Clams in Cups: Legends of the Heart, for the next year to With Kids.

One of my dreams is to help children achieve their dreams. And as Mr. Carlyle said in the interview below: 'Don’t ever let anyone take your dreams from you'.

If you want to follow in the footsteps of Diane, we are now inviting our friends, supporters and ambassadors to write guest blog posts for us.

Whether you want to write an article, a poem, or a short story, we want to share your thoughts, opinions, imaginations, dreams and aspirations with our community.

If you would like to write a guest blog post for With Kids, please email s.blair@withkids.co.uk with your ideas and suggestions.

Clams in Cups: Legends of the Heart, is available online at AuthorHouse, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

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With Kids are Having a Ball!

At With Kids, we always make sure some of Glasgow's most disadvantaged and vulnerable children are having the time of their lives, but next month, they really will be having a Ball.

That’s because on Friday 14th of September, we are hosting our second With Kids Autumn Ball and Fashion Show!

Taking place in the luxuriously refurbished Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow, the evening, organised by fatBuzz Ltd, promises to be a night to remember.

Featuring clothes from Falk&Ross UK Limited, as well as exclusively designed t-shirts made by the children and their families, the children themselves will take to the catwalk to strut their stuff.

Letting the kids take centre stage on the night will undoubtedly help boost their confidence and self-esteem, and subsequently, could really help change their young lives.

April Clark, a student at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, will be managing production and choreography, while students from Cumbernauld College will be taking care of hair and makeup.

After the fashion show, the party will continue with Michelle McManus and Scotland’s top female tribute band, Feeva.

The event will be hosted by BAFTA award winning actress and With Kids’ Ambassador, Kathleen McDermott Carberry, alongside celebrity designer and television presenter, John Amabile.

Kathleen, who was born and bred in Barlanark in the east end of the city, has previously spoke of her pride in being an Ambassador for With Kids.

She said: “I am extremely proud to be an Ambassador for With Kids because the area in which they work is very close to my heart and it saddens me that so many children living in Glasgow are still in need of the help and support With Kids provide."

This fashion show will not only raise much-needed funds for one of Glasgow's most important charities, but the children will be undertaking something that can empower them in a way that they have never experienced.

A table of ten for the With Kids Autumn Ball and Fashion Show will cost £750 and we’d be delighted if you, your friends and clients could join us for a memorable night of drinks, dinner, fashion, and entertainment.

We are delighted to have a number of category sponsors onboard, but there are still sponsorship opportunities available. If you want to support this event, you can be assured that With Kids have considerable experience of event management and corporate partnerships and will maximise the opportunity for you.

Finally, the With Kids Autumn Ball and Fashion Show promises to be a fantastic event, but we depend on auction prizes to make a healthy amount of money for some of the most vulnerable and excluded children who desperately need the support of With Kids.

For more information on booking details, sponsorship or auction prizes, please contact events@fatbuzz.com.

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