This year, we wanted to bring a bit of seasonal joy to the unit and set out to put together fifty gift boxes for parents who will find themselves with babies in neonatal care this Christmas.
While time in the unit is always challenging, the festive period can be particularly difficult for parents in hospital. So we reached out on social media to find companies who would be willing to donate something special for our boxes, and it’s fair to say we were overwhelmed by the generosity shown.
Our neonatal babies are so special to us, but we wanted to remind parents that they are important too and are doing a wonderful job in extremely challenging circumstances. We hope that our boxes, due to be given to parents over the festive period, will lift spirits and bring some smiles to their faces.
Thank you for all the kind donations.
We received a number of donations from companies, and we are so thankful to them all.
Christmas Gift box supporters
Spacemasks.com donated gorgeous self-heating eye masks, designed to melt away some of the tension parents might be feeling.
Not only did Keep Edinburgh Thriving donate fifty boxes for packaging, but they donated refreshing drinks from Bon Accord, lip balms from Lucky Cloud, face and hand balms from the Edinburgh Natural Skincare Company, Scottish Fine soaps and chocolate from the Chocolate Tree for the boxes, alongside a number of delicious goodies for the staffroom.
Highland Angel kindly donated sterling silver ‘love’ necklaces for every box. We have no doubt these will be treasured by mums long after their neonatal stay.
The Shortbread House of Edinburgh donated a variety of their melt in the mouth shortbread, the perfect mid-afternoon pick me up alongside a cup of tea, in our opinion.
HSBC Edinburgh, one of our corporate sponsors this year, donated a Terry’s Chocolate Orange for every box, as well as the staffroom, and they handmade Christmas decorations in SSCB colours – a real personal touch and our thanks go out to them.
The Little Parlour kindly sent over 50 pick n mix bags – perfect for those parents with a sweet tooth.
The wonderful team at The Drinks Bakery donated different types of their moreish biscuits – it took all our resolve not to eat them ourselves!
East Lothian’s Laura Thomas donated calming Lavender scented pillow mist – the ultimate soother for all of the many thoughts swirling about in the heads of those with babies in the unit.
Phil Smith kindly sent over shampoo, conditioner and lots of other lovely hair treats for parents. For those of us who have spent time in the unit, I think we will all attest to the healing power of a warm shower at the end of a long day at hospital.
Tesco stores across Edinburgh kindly donated luxurious hand creams, lip balms and healthy snacks for our boxes – an essential combination for time in the unit. As well as these donations, community collections in store donated £1000 to the charity.
A deserving treat for our Neonatal team
The team at the Simpson Neonatal Unit really are superheroes in our eyes, and we wanted to be sure that they didn’t feel forgotten this Christmas. Many of the generous companies who contributed to our gift boxes for parents also donated items for staff. From shortbread and biscuits for the staffroom to tea, coffee and hot chocolate along with beauty products and sweet treats, we hope these small gestures go some way to showing this extraordinary team how much we value them.
Thank you to you all
It’s no secret that 2020 has been a year of immense challenges for us all in different ways, but we would like to thank each and every one of our supporters for their help. We couldn’t do what we do without you!
A special thank you to those companies, large and small, who have helped us create our Christmas boxes this year. We have no doubt that they will be so appreciated.
And finally, to the team at the Simpson Neonatal Unit – thank you, you are all extraordinary.
Learn more about the Simpson Neonatal Unit and how you can help support the charity.