A CHARITY which supports people with brain injuries in the Highlands is celebrating as this month's winners in a Rotary Club giveaway backed by the Highland News.
The Headway Highland charity will receive £300 which will help towards paying for stimulation activities such as painting, arts and crafts and different types of therapies which are offered at the monthly meeting held at Inshes Church.
The donation is part of a cash giveaway by Loch Ness Rotary Club, worth thousands of pounds over this year, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its charter.
It has teamed up with the Highland News to run the programme, aimed at grassroot causes rather than the bigger high-profile charities. In each month, a lucky group, individual or charity in the Inverness area will receive a cash boost of £300 to put to good use.
Janie King, treasurer of the Highland Headway charity, said: "We are very happy to be the winner of this month's money.
"The money is a great boost and will help towards paying for our stimulation activities which we provide at our monthly meetings such as arts and crafts, ceramics and therapy sessions.
"We are a group made up of carers and volunteers and we do all our own fundraising, so any extra is welcomed very much."
Janie explained it is very important for people in the Highlands to know that the society exists.
She said: "It is very difficult to get any support in the community if you have a brain injury. Once you leave hospital it's almost like you are in a black hole.
"It is also difficult for other people to understand a brain injury. When you have a brain injury you can suffer from personality changes, poor memory and slurred speech. But to look at you, people might not know there is anything wrong. It's not like a broken arm where people can see straight away what the problem is.
"That's why Highland Headway is so important - we offer support and information for people in that situation."
And Janie, whose own daughter suffered a brain injury, said the experience can be isolating and Headway Highland wants to combat that.
She said: "We have monthly meetings at Inshes Church in Inverness, but because we are a charity for people from all over the Highlands, we never know who is going to come in. It varies week to week.
"We have recently started satellite groups in Fort William and Caithness for people who live that bit too far away to travel to Inverness.
"At the meetings we aim to offer people a place to feel at ease and a place to come and socialise with other people who can understand what one another are going through."
New Loch Ness Rotary Club president Alistair Norrie said: "We are really pleased that the Headway Highland group has been chosen as our August winners as they are obviously a very deserving cause when you look at the work the volunteers put into keeping things running for the many people who benefit.
"We know that the donation we make to the group will certainly help them to support their network of carers who are there to help out the individuals and families affected by a brain injury. We hope take things to a new level and wish everyone at Highland Headway all the very best for the future."
For more information about the work that Highland Headway does, email services.asst.director@headway.org.uk
