Refugee charity welcomes Allied Vehicles donation

A Scottish charity that gives personalised welcome bags to forcibly displaced people arriving in Glasgow will be able to continue their work after a four-figure donation from one of the city’s most prominent family firms.

Refuweegee, which was set up eight years ago, has provided more than 15,000 of the welcome and emergency support packs to people all over Scotland.

Now their work has been boosted by a £1,000 donation from Allied Vehicles Charitable Trust, the charity arm of Allied Vehicles, which is based in Possilpark.

Glasgow is known for the friendliness of its welcome and Refuweegee has capitalised on that since it was established in December 2015 through the durable welcome rucksacks, along with assorted events and volunteer opportunities.

Donations manager Lily Gutierrez says they offer a range of varied services every day, with donated clothes laid out like a shop, essential hygiene and food support packs, as well as food items for people living in hotels or other temporary accommodation.

“We also offer toy packs for anyone with children, and when people are new to Glasgow the first thing they receive is a welcome pack,” she says.

“We build these for men, women and children. It’s a pack full of lots of lovely essential things ­– adults get toiletries, an item to keep them cosy, an item like Irn Bru, which is a favourite, as well as a lovely welcome letter, which is written by local children or adults welcoming people to Glasgow.”

Lily says people can also come to their city centre premises to meet others in a similar situation, as well as for English classes and various workshops, including children’s art therapy.

Refuweegee is kept running by its volunteers, including recent arrivals from the growing community of displaced people.

“While they’re waiting, asylum seekers don’t have the right to work, so have a lot of free time on their hands if they’re not studying,” says Lily.

“The volunteering is a key part of integrating people. If someone’s studying English at college it’s a good chance for them to put it into practice and they can chat with Scottish volunteers. It’s also really handy to have so many really talented volunteers who speak other languages as a native. We don’t have access to professional interpreters, so they can jump in to ask questions like, ‘How old is your baby … what size of nappies do they need?’

“It helps everything run smoothly and you can really see people grow and blossom ­– they help us keep it all going and help us continue to grow as well.”

Allied Vehicles Corporate Culture Director, David Facenna, praised the commitment of the charity and their volunteers.

“Most of us couldn’t possibly imagine what it must be like to be uprooted from your home to find yourself virtually destitute in a foreign land,” he said.

“We all know how friendly and welcoming Glasgow is and it’s brilliant that Refuweegee have managed to capture that spirit and spread it among these displaced people.

“They’re doing some great work and I’m delighted we were able to help them.”