Thousands of pounds of toys gifted to Kirkcaldy pub's Christmas appeal

Rab Allan, who runs the White Heather on Hendry Road, is well-known for his generosity. He has run the Brian Kerr Foundation since 2018 and has put on fundraising events throughout the year, including this year’s Christmas appeal.

Rab said he was inspired to take action after seeing toys being disposed of in the run up to Christmas.

He said: “I went to the dump one day and I saw a guy putting a load of toys in the skips. I asked him what he was you doing with them’ and he told me he was dumping them – because they are getting new presents this year’”.

That response spurred Rab into action. He put out a call out to those who may have done something similar to put the goods to much better use.

“I thought that there must be loads of adults out there who are going to dump their stuff,” Rab explained. “I put a post it on Facebook asking if anyone wanted to hand the toys in to us."

Rab said he was “taken aback” by the response, which saw thousands of pounds of toys and gifts donated to the long-established pub, and families were able to book a private slot to collect gift packages. Rab estimates that between 20 to 30 families benefited. Working with his cousin, Kelly Anne Grubb, and her daughter Jordan the pub opened its doors for two days to distribute the gifts.

He said: “Families didn’t know what to expect, if they were going to get a selection box and a teddy bear. They got masses and masses of toys.”

Rab took over the White Heather three weeks ago and sees it as an opportunity to use the pub as a base to continue his charity work.

Explaining his philanthropy, Rab said: “It breaks my heart to think kids might not have anything at Christmas. I know my kids are spoiled, so if I can help anyone I’ll do it – and it’s not just Christmas, I try to do it throughout the year as well. In all the years of doing it, it has always been for kids. Families have to spend money on gas, electricity and food, they don’t have money for luxuries.”