Derek has your donations in the bag
11 September 2012
An Edinburgh driver who delivers and collects donation bags to homes across the city is preparing to deliver his 500,000th bag this week – a record for our team of delivery and collection drivers.
Derek Sanders (50) has worked for Shelter Scotland for almost 15 years and estimates that today - 11th September - he will have covered 35,000 city stairwells to deliver his 500,000th charity donations bag.
Even though some people are struggling themselves these days, they’ve continued to donate to Shelter Scotland. It’s humbling to know support like that is out there.
Derek Sanders
If placed back-to-back, the bags would reach the distance (155 miles) from Edinburgh to Inverness.
Derek will also collect his 100,000th full bag of donations and deliver it to one of the city’s eight Shelter Scotland shops in the same week.
Derek is no stranger to success after winning a gold medal at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games in Bridge. He says that reaching the half million mark may not compare to a gold medal, but he is proud of his contribution to the charity and the families and individuals it helps.
Derek Sanders said:
“The distribution and collection of charity bags may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I’ve enjoyed every minute over the years. I can barely believe I’m going to deliver my 500,000th bag.
“During my time I’ve seen some weird and wonderful donations made to Shelter Scotland – including a cello someone had left out for us and a painting that turned out to be worth a small fortune. What’s surprised me most however has been the generosity and kindness from the public. Even though some people are struggling themselves these days, they’ve continued to donate to Shelter Scotland. It’s humbling to know support like that is out there.”
Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland, said:
“I’d like to congratulate Derek on this fantastic achievement. Not only has he shown his dedication to Shelter Scotland with 15 years of service, but he’s done so in a spectacular fashion.
“Without dedicated people like Derek, and of course the generosity of members of the public from across Edinburgh, we would not be able to supply our shops with much needed stock and income, which is vital at a time when funding for our national and local services is being cut.”
Graeme Brown added: “The top two reasons for why people donate to charity shops are to help people in need and because it’s a convenient way to get rid of items they no longer need. Nevertheless, stock remains one of the most important issues facing charity retailers. We hope that the people of Edinburgh will continue to support Derek and Shelter Scotland, because without their help and generosity our fight to end bad housing and homelessness would be so much harder."
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