Ayr charity shop closes

Sep 25 2009 by Edwin Lawrence

FIFTY volunteers have been discarded with the shock closure of a charity book store in Ayr.

“It was business as usual one day,” said a helper at the Newmarket Street shop.

“But at a meeting that night we were all told the shop was to close, with immediate effect.

“We couldn’t believe what we were hearing, as we are all very committed to the charity.”

Around half the volunteers managed to attend the hastily arranged meeting on Thursday last week.

Charity boss Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow personally made the shock closure news.

He and brother Fergus founded Scottish International Relief in 1992 during the Bosnian conflict.

Then in 2002, during a SIR famine relief project in Malawi, Magnus was spurred to launch Mary’s Meals.

“It’s a wonderful charity,” said axed Ayr shop volunteer Sophie Wilson, 19.

“And an estimated 93p of every £1 raised goes to the work overseas.

“The Ayr volunteers are just so disappointed they didn’t get a chance to come up with new ideas to keep the shop going.

“And we didn’t get the chance to say goodbye to the customers who have supported us.

“We also feel shop manager Chris Moorhouse – the only paid member of staff – did a great job, far beyond what he was paid to do.”

Another volunteer, David Stubbs, said: “The shop was not only a bookshop but helped the community focus on provision of food to children around the world.

“It assisted in the despatch of 1,197 backpacks and had contributed half the costs for building a school kitchen in Malawi.”

Retired David added: “The shop was also an excellent introduction to retail work for many unemployed volunteers, and several staff received their community service awards through this venture.

“We’re sorry for the inconvenience the closure created for the many customers and contributors of books and financial aid to the charity.

“Apologies also to the people who have offered their books and are waiting collection but due to the short notice they will not be collected.”

Many of the volunteers believed Sunday opening could have saved the shop, but this is against the charity’s policy.

A spokesperson for Mary’s Meals said the closure decision was taken ‘with great regret’.

She added: “This decision was only taken after months of work to reduce overheads as much as possible and boost takings.

“Despite everyone's best efforts the shop has been running at a loss for some time. As a charity we have a duty to act as good stewards of the donations entrusted to us and therefore we could not continue to present the shop to the public as an effective way of supporting Mary's Meals.

“We are very grateful for all the hard work undertaken by the staff and volunteers and for the support shown by the local community.

“Mary's Meals is currently providing over 375,000 children with a daily meal in school. This wonderful achievement is only possible because of the generous support we receive from the public and the dedication of thousands of volunteers around the world.

“We look forward to continuing to work with the people of Ayr and exploring ways that volunteers can stay involved with Mary's Meals so that we can reach more of the world’s hungry children.”

Mary’s Meals now has seven charity shops, including one in Troon’s Portland Street.