Member Spotlight: we take a look at one of our Scotland based member organisations, Blythswood Care, and how they came to donate fire and rescue aid to other communities.

Blythswood Care is a Christian organisation based in the North of Scotland that has been involved in the humanitarian field for the last 25 years. Most of Blythswood’s work is carried out in Eastern Europe with their work extending to Africa and Asia too. They deliver an array of activities – from coordinating local food banks, to their ‘Shoe Box Appeal’ delivered to families across the world, running a project for young men who have been through the orphanage system in Romania, and delivering fire and rescue vehicles and equipment to Serbia, Romania and Moldova. 

Their involvement with the emergency services and fire & rescue activities started when one of Blythswood’s contacts in Serbia asked if the charity could help find some water pumps to deal with local flooding. One of the charity’s volunteers (a firefighter) was able to source some equipment to assist with the flooding and a training package was delivered with the resources to enable safe and correct use of the donated equipment. 

Visit their website for more info on their great work

As a result of this, Blythswood Care now has a team of firefighters and others in their group of volunteers dedicated specifically to this area of work (read more). Over the years, the organisation has sent a number of fire appliances to Serbia along with paramedic ambulances. This led to their many donations of equipment and training in nearby Moldova, where several FIRE AID members are delivering aid.  Blythswood Care is in the process of supplying fire and rescue aid to Romania and is helping to develop a training school in Serbia for fire and rescue workers.

The charity is represented by Finlay MacKenzie on the FIRE AID Steering Committee where he regularly shares his personal experience and that of Blythswood Care with other members, including sourcing equipment for others and providing advice on complex logistical arrangements. 

Further information about the great work of FIRE AID member Blythswood Care can be found on their website: http://www.blythswood.org/

Blythswood’s policy is to help anybody in need no matter race, creed or religion and will only talk about our own faith if asked to do so.