Heather’s Heroes pledge £5,000 match funding
Inverness dad Neil McGregor is celebrating reaching the halfway point of an epic year-long fundraiser.
Neil, who works as the Business Development and Fundraising Manager for The Archie Foundation in the Highlands, has now completed five of his ambitious 10 challenges to raise vital funds for the charity.
Having launched the challenge to mark the 10th anniversary of the Highland Children’s Unit (HCU) at Raigmore Hospital, Neil is hoping to raise £10,000 in this 10-10-10 fundraising effort.
So far, Neil has completed the Inverness Half Marathon, a fire walk, both the Aberdeen and Dundee Kiltwalks and scaled Ben Nevis with the charity’s 14-kilogram mascot, Archie Bear, on his back. Archie is now unofficially the highest charity mascot and over six-foot teddy bear in the UK!
Neil’s other remaining challenges include another fire walk, this time in Falcon Square in Inverness, and a night-time zipline.
With five challenges now in the bag, but with another five still to come, Neil is stepping up the fundraising push as he looks to reach his £10,000 target.
Fellow Highlands charity, Heather’s Heroes, has pledged an additional £5,000 to The Archie Foundation if Neil reaches his £10,000 fundraising target.
This means reaching the goal could turn Neil’s £10,000 challenge into £15,000 for Archie, providing an even greater boost to the charity’s work supporting children and families.
Neil said, “Getting halfway through the challenge feels like a huge milestone, but the fundraising target is still the real goal. I’m incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported me so far, whether by donating or simply sharing what I’m doing.
“Knowing that Heather’s Heroes will add another £5,000 if I can get to £10,000 gives me even more motivation to keep pushing. It would be fantastic to turn this into £15,000 for Archie and ultimately help even more children and families.
“There are still five challenges to go, so I’m definitely not taking my foot off the pedal yet!”
If Neil reaches his £10,000 fundraising goal, he has also pledged that his tenth and final challenge will be a skydive.
Neil continued, “I don’t know if it was a moment of madness or inspiration. I wanted to end the fundraiser with something special, especially if I hit my £10,000 fundraising goal, and a skydive seemed like the perfect way to do this. Hopefully, I can do this, despite my fear of heights!”
The HCU opened its doors in 2016, with thousands of children across the North of Scotland receiving medical care at the facility. The Archie Foundation had been involved with the unit since its inception, with the charity raising £2 million to help fund the build of the unit.
The proceeds raised from Neil’s challenges will help Archie to continue to fund vital projects, specialist roles and family support services at the HCU in its 10th anniversary year, including upkeep of the hospital’s gardens, providing crafts and toys for children during a stay and bereavement support.
To help Neil reach his fundraising target, donations can be made via his JustGiving page at www.justgiving.com/page/neil-mcgregor-archie-challenge-2026.
To join Neil on his remaining challenges, visit www.archie.org/events/.