St Mirren FC Charitable Foundation has received more than £18,000 in funding to support its Abbeycare Buddies community hub in Paisley.
The grant of $25,000 (over £18,000) has been awarded by the Ellen and Ian Graham Foundation Inc., a US-based charitable organisation, to help expand recovery support in the area .
Abbeycare Buddies runs every Wednesday evening at the SMiSA Stadium in Paisley. It offers a safe space for people in recovery from addiction to connect, share experiences and build social connections.
The sessions include a hot meal, guest speakers, peer-led discussions, creative workshops, mindfulness sessions, yoga and meditation. The programme is delivered in partnership with Abbeycare, with support from foundation staff and community partners.
Gayle Brannigan, CEO of St Mirren FC Charitable Foundation, said: “The Ellen and Ian Graham Foundation are new funding partners for us, and we could not be more grateful to have their support. From our first meeting with Ian when we were sharing our respective work and getting to know each other, it became clear as soon as we mentioned our hopes for Abbeycare Buddies Recovery Hub, that addiction and recovery are areas they have a genuine interest in and are emotionally invested, we have been greatly impressed with the extraordinary level of knowledge, sensitivity, enthusiasm and care they have shown towards the project so far.
This funding will help us and our partners at Abbeycare to further develop the project by allowing us to provide additional wraparound support services to the families, children and loved ones of those who are either actively in the throes of dependency or on some stage of their recovery process.
We are confident that this is a partnership that will prove to be purposeful and leave a lasting legacy.”
The funding will support key elements of the hub. This includes expanding support opportunities and increasing outreach to ensure more people can benefit .
Ian Tracy, of the Ellen and Ian Graham Foundation, said: “Oh, when the Saints go marching in! Gayle Brannigan and her team are certainly saints, and the partnership with Abbeycare further enables the delivery of these vital recovery services at scale. We are pleased to help extend this work to the Paisley community and beyond.
As I’ve said before when supporting a similar initiative in Florida, addiction is complex, with neurological, social, and societal dimensions that many of us may not fully understand. That is why we believe it is so important to partner with specialists like Abbeycare and St Mirren FC Charitable Foundation, who have the experience and expertise to support capable people across Scotland who may be in recovery or currently struggling with addiction.
Above all, my wife and colleagues want those individuals and their families to know that they are not alone as they navigate this journey.”
St Mirren Football Club’s charitable foundation delivers programmes across Renfrewshire focused on health and wellbeing, education, mental fitness and community connection.
The Abbeycare Buddies hub is open weekly and aims to support individuals and families affected by addiction across Paisley and the wider Renfrewshire area.