Entrepreneur Marie Macklin has put up an emergency cash fund of £100,000 as part of a package of support for people in the Kilmarnock area affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
The founder and executive chair of the HALO Urban Regeneration Company is making the cash available to help elderly and vulnerable people and to support for small businesses in her home town and East Ayrshire.
Her ‘Lift Up Your Hearts’ package includes:
- Delivering food, medicines and other essential supplies to older and vulnerable people
- A Facebook Group aimed to put vulnerable people and older people or their carers in touch with each other and prevent isolation
- Free accommodation in HALO's apartment portfolio to allow people affected by coronavirus to self-isolate
- A COBRA-style business group to assist SMEs access advice and funding.
Fiona Lees, chief executive of East Ayrshire Council, said: “We have been humbled and heartened by the generous offers of support we have received from individuals, groups and local businesses. In many ways we are not surprised, given the kindness and compassion we see daily in communities across East Ayrshire.
"Our teams are linking with community and voluntary organisations to discuss the roles they could play and to identify the support they need. We will be working closely with these community led groups and they will become key information and distribution points for food, resources, information and the coordination of volunteering."
The first phase of HALO is under construction on the site of the former Johnnie Walker whisky plant in Kilmarnock. It is intended to create a net zero carbon commercial, educational, cultural, leisure and lifestyle quarter in the town, fuelled by renewable energy.
Macklin said: “The coronavirus pandemic is affecting communities across the globe and it is vital that we come together to support each other through these unprecedented times with a true ‘Lift Up Your Hearts’ campaign. There is a great deal of admirable work being undertaken on an individual basis by businesses, who are also facing their own challenges at this time, but a co-ordinated effort by the commercial community is now required. Now is the time for us to support the communities we work and live in.
“I want the older generations and vulnerable people in Kilmarnock to see that we are demonstrating the Dunkirk spirit to do everything we can to support them. We, the business community, are not retreating – we are advancing, to protect each other and support our communities.”
