Today’s the day that Simpsons Special Care Babies (SSCB), the official charity of the Simpsons Neonatal Unit at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, launches its new Teddy Bears’ Picnic campaign.
They will be fundraising throughout July by asking children and their families to host a Teddy Bears’ Picnic.
Participants can either host a picnic of their own, inviting pals and their favourite bear, raise money in a different way and donate on their website, and/or share a picture of the picnic on social media, using the hashtag #SimpsonsBabies or #SimpsonsPicnic.
If you’re not an al fresco fan, or don’t know any bears to ask along, there’s an easier way to support the charity.
Some of Edinburgh’s best cafes will be creating exclusive goodies.
Bruntsfield’s Honeycomb & Co, which is known for its colourful cakes and brunches, is offering a fresh cherry and lemon polenta cake for £3.50, with 50 per cent of the sales to SSCB throughout July. The Pantry in Stockbridge is doing a dish of waffles that are topped with a rose and strawberry compote, Chantilly cream and a shortbread bear. These are £11.50, with £2 going to the charity.
Salt Cafe in Morningside and The Pastry Section in Stockbridge will also be offering fund-raising cakes, but these are still in development.
All the money will be going to a good cause, as the charity raises funds for state-of-the-art equipment, neonatal research and support for families in The Simpson Neonatal Unit. Every year, it looks after around 850 premature and sick children from across Scotland.
A similar event was planned last year, but couldn’t go ahead because of covid.
“We were disappointed that our annual Teddy Bears’ Picnic fundraising event in 2020 was cancelled, but we hoped that this year would be different”, says Simpsons trust, Gemma Springford. “Along with other charities and businesses, we’ve had to adapt our strategy. We hope that encouraging friends and families across the country to host their own Teddy Bears’ Picnic will be a fun way to get together while adhering to the current guidance. We’re asking people to host an event, raise money and donate to the charity – while enjoying some much needed time together.”
Donations can be made to the campaign at sscb.org/tedd
