Aerial Services Scotland Blog

Dear Robert,

My name is Amadou and I’ve been SPANA Country Director in Mali since 2003. You may have heard the story of Amou recently, one of thousands of hardworking donkeys my team have seen in Ségou, Mali. If her story moved you to send a gift, thank you so much on behalf of working animals like Amou.

If you haven’t yet had the opportunity to donate, please do give what you can today to help build a new veterinary centre in Ségou and provide treatment for more than 60,000 working animals a year in Mali.

Every month, the mobile veterinary team travels the 150 miles from our centre in Bamako, Mali’s capital, to rural Ségou. Owners and their working animals wait to be seen for everything from infectious diseases to dangerous weight loss. Our two veterinary technicians in Ségou can only respond to local urgent cases on motorbikes. They can only do so much with the limited kit they can carry.

Will you save the lives of working animals by helping to build a new veterinary centre in Mali?

Regards,

Spana

Dear Mr McIver,

This week, thanks to you, we smashed our target in the Big Give Christmas Challenge, raising £20,081 to provide sewing machines for our new training centre in Tanzania!

The team at the programmes in Tanzania are absolutely thrilled and we couldn’t have done it without all our wonderful supporters. So from all of us here at World Villages for Children and on behalf of the young women in Tanzania who will benefit from this new centre, thank you.

With our sincere thanks,

Nicola Lawson
UK Manager and Trustee

Dear Mr McIver

With Christmas just around the corner, we’ve been working tirelessly to make it a joyful season for everyone who turns to us for help. But we can’t do our vital work without you.

There is still time to help us to bring kindness to people in need. Please, if you can, donate to our Christmas Appeal to provide life-changing support for someone who is homeless, hungry or alone.

If you have already supported us, thank you so much for your generosity.

We want to make Christmas a special time for everyone, and we will be doing all we can to spread love and bring friendship to people in desperate need. Here are just some of the ways we’ll be helping this Christmas:
We’ll be bringing the joy of Christmas to struggling families by delivering parcels of festive food and toys for the children.
We’ll be providing a Christmas dinner and the warmth of friendship for people who are lonely.
And for those who are homeless at Christmas, we’ll be providing shelter and support to help them make a fresh start.
Making Christmas special starts with the kindness of individuals – whether it’s a Salvation Army officer, staff member, the volunteers in our centres, or kind friends like you whose support helps to make Christmas happen.

Please give what you can, so that we can continue bringing joy into people’s lives this Christmas.

May God bless you for your support, and my warmest Christmas wishes to you.

Lieut-Colonel Dean Pallant
On behalf of The Salvation Army

Dear Robert

Thank you for your recent gift of £75 from Aerial Services Scotland in support of the work of MAF. I have enclosed a receipt for your records. I must apologise, I think that your previous gift of £75 did not get acknowledged. I have enclosed a receipt for this gift also.

Your continued support at this time enables our life transforming flights to reach some of the world’s most isolated communities. I hope this recent story encourages you to see the work made possible through your support.

Our weekly flights in South Sudan are vital to the In Deed And Truth (IDAT) hospital in Tonj. Not only do our planes provide safe transport for supplies, IDAT staff and patients, but they also allow our engineers to provide vital support for the hospital.

MAF South Sudan Maintenance Manager James Mollenhauer always knew his skills would come in handy on the mission field, but didn’t know he’d be fixing breathing apparatus for newborns. “We’ve got people at MAF with skills and this is how we can serve our partners,” James explains. “Before coming to South Sudan, I used to fix a lot of appliances – my favourite thing is fixing things!”

Because of your support, we were able to fly four broken oxygen concentrators to the MAF base in Juba. James was then able to fix and return them to IDAT’s hospital, ready to help babies struggling with TB and pneumonia.

Dr Jonathan Macleod considers MAF to be an essential support to IDAT’s ministry, pointing out that, “Road transport to Juba isn’t an option for us due to distance (three days’ driving), lack of proper roads and a high risk of ambush from rebels. Having a weekly shuttle from Juba has massively improved our effectiveness. It’s been such a privilege to watch God grow the hospital over the past seven years.”

Thank you for partnering with MAF in this way.

Kind regards
Paul

To Robert and all of the staff at Aerial Services Scotland

Thank you for your recent gifts to MAF. Your continued support at this time enables our life transforming flights to reach some of the world’s most isolated communities. I hope this recent story encourages you to see the work made possible through your support.

Our weekly flights in South Sudan are vital to the In Deed And Truth (IDAT) hospital in Tonj. Not only do our planes provide safe transport for supplies, IDAT staff and patients, but they also allow our engineers to provide vital support for the hospital.

MAF South Sudan Maintenance Manager James Mollenhauer always knew his skills would come in handy on the mission field, but didn’t know he’d be fixing breathing apparatus for newborns. “We’ve got people at MAF with skills and this is how we can serve our partners,” James explains. “Before coming to South Sudan, I used to fix a lot of appliances – my favourite thing is fixing things!”

Because of your support, we were able to fly four broken oxygen concentrators to the MAF base in Juba. James was then able to fix and return them to IDAT’s hospital, ready to help babies struggling with TB and pneumonia.

Dr Jonathan Macleod considers MAF to be an essential support to IDAT’s ministry, pointing out that, “Road transport to Juba isn’t an option for us due to distance (three days’ driving), lack of proper roads and a high risk of ambush from rebels. Having a weekly shuttle from Juba has massively improved our effectiveness. It’s been such a privilege to watch God grow the hospital over the past seven years.”

Thank you for partnering with MAF in this way.

Kind regards
Paul Dunning

Dear R,
Wildlife heroes come in many forms—from dedicated IFAW supporters like you to wildlife rescuers, veterinarians, rangers, and animal carers.

As the holiday season approaches, I’ve been thinking about how thankful I am for all of IFAW’s wildlife heroes, and I hope you’ll help me spread the gratitude: Send a thank you note to a wildlife hero and we’ll deliver your message to our teams in the field!

2 IFAW Marine Mammal Rescue team members support a rescued common dolphin in the water
Jane Hoppe, IFAW’s Marine Mammal Rescue & Research Stranding Coordinator, and response intern, Jenny Camerlengo, support a rescued common dolphin in the water to re-acclimate just before it swims off at its release.
IFAW’s Marine Mammal Rescue & Research team rescues stranded marine mammals, releases them back into the wild whenever possible, investigates the causes of strandings, and shares their expertise around the world. The innovations of this team have revolutionised how stranded dolphins are evaluated and treated in the field. Now, nearly 80% of stranded dolphins are able to be released back into the wild — a 5x increase since 1998.

Wildlife rescuers save lives—help us say thanks

An IFAW Vet treats a sick albatross
IFAW supports the veterinary staff at the Bonorong Wildlife Hospital and Sanctuary in Tasmania where vets like Kim Meijer, pictured above, treat injured or sick wildlife like magpies, wombats, lizards and Tasmanian devils. Veterinarians provide the critical care these animals need in order to be released back into the wild.

Veterinarians are wildlife heroes—help us say thanks!

IFAW Team Lioness Rangers: Anastacia Kupayi, Beatrice Sailepu and Eunice Peneti
Wildlife rangers, like these brave women in Kenya, serve as the first line of defence against the poaching and retaliatory killings of elephants, lions, giraffes, cheetahs, and other iconic wildlife. In 2019 IFAW helped create Team Lioness: one of the first all-women ranger units in Kenya. This brave team of rangers is protecting animals while defying constraining social norms and creating new opportunities for women in Kenya.

Wildlife rangers risk their lives for animals—help us say thank you!

Elephant Keepers like Elvis Lisibi care for orphaned elephants at the IFAW-GRI Elephant Orphanage Project in Zambia. Keepers take orphaned elephants out for regular walks, put them on a consistent feeding schedule, and watch over them while they sleep. They give young elephants the care and attention they need in order to someday return to the wild.

Say thank you to dedicated carers like Elvis!

Last but not least, thank you for all you do for animals, people and the place we call home.

Azzedine Downes
President & CEO, IFAW

R – this is so inspiring.

Since I emailed on Giving Tuesday, over 1,000 people have already bought a gift for a refugee, to help them through the winter. Thank you so much.

But with so many torture surivors facing unbearable hardship, we need all hands on deck. Without support from their families, and with little access to resources, many will be facing heartbreaking decisions this winter.

We need your help to make sure that this winter, no one has to choose between keeping warm and buying essentials for their child.

R, with just three weeks to go until Christmas, will you buy a heartwarming gift for a torture survivor? It only takes a minute.

Every child deserves toys – but someone living on £5 a day might struggle to buy them

Give a new parent a box of baby essentials, like nappies

Help a torture survivor get specialist support – in their mother tongue

The festive season is a time to be with our loved ones – but many torture survivors will be spending the season separated from their family. Trauma, isolation and financial worries only add to the strain.

By sending them a gift today, you could help make sure a refugee has everything they need to make it through their first winter in the UK – and show them they’re not alone.

Help us send a gift and winter essentials to every torture survivor we support – it only takes a minute.

Thank you, R.

The Freedom from Torture Team

Hi Robert,

Giving Tuesday is over for another year and I wanted to say thank you to all of our wonderful supporters for their generosity.

I wanted to let you know the excellent news that almost 500 Amnesty supporters came together on Giving Tuesday, and altogether raised more than £13,000! What an achievement!

We are still living in uncertain times and donations really do matter more than ever, so thank you. Every show of solidarity and act of kindness makes a difference.

Because of supporters like you Robert, we can and will make change happen. We can make more noise, be more powerful and make sure humanity wins.

Remember, Giving Tuesday takes place every year on the Tuesday following Black Friday. We can’t wait to see what next year will bring.

Eilidh Macpherson
Campaigns Manager– Individuals at Risk
Amnesty International UK

Dear Mr McIver,

I know it sounds daunting, but it is estimated that over 4 million people will have visual impairment or sight loss by 2050. We’re here to help, but we can’t do this without you. Your support could give the people I work with the life-changing gift of a guide dog, and bring someone with sight loss independence, and a best friend to support them with everyday challenges.

Chris was born with a degenerative eye condition which over time worsened, so he became very dependent on other people to help him with day to day tasks and felt uneasy and unsafe when he was out and about. That was until we matched him with his guide dog Jaeger! With Jaeger by his side, Chris is loving life. Jaeger helps Chris safely navigate the outside, enabling him to pick his daughters up from school, and enjoy an active social life. He’s living so much more and that is all thanks to supporters just like you.

Chris and his guide dog Jaeger
“I’m really looking forward to Christmas this year. Jaeger will no doubt be helping me do the Christmas shopping (as long as he doesn’t peek when I’m picking out his present)!”

“In 2019 alone, generous supporters enabled Guide Dogs to support 4,800 partnerships like mine with Jaeger. This is what you could make possible, for more people, with a gift this Christmas.”– Chris

Yours Sincerely,

Hannah Watts, Guide Dog Mobility Specialist

Hi Robert,

Meet Mary Ajoung, she lives in the village of Biet in Northern Bahr El Ghazel, South Sudan. She is the sole breadwinner for her family of nine children, six boys and three girls.

Farming had always been tough for Mary. As her family’s sole breadwinner, she had no other choice. But last year, it became impossible. Floods washed away all Mary’s seeds, tools and animals. It was a disaster:

‘We harvested nothing. It was all destroyed, and the loss pained our hearts’ — Mary Ajoung

From floods to droughts, severe weather is battering Mary’s community in South Sudan more often. Mary can’t stop the climate crisis. Yet with a different approach to farming she can bounce back – again and again.

She already has, thanks to training she and other mums in her community have received through Christian Aid’s local partner SPEDP. A morsel for each or more food for one? With your support, mums like Mary won’t have to choose.

With warmest wishes,

James Wani
Country Manager, South Sudan
Christian Aid