How my life has changed since…

Before explaining where I’m going after nearly 2.5 years of these blogs, I feel that I should tell you where I’ve come from and how I got here.

My parents grew up in Glasgow but moved to Perth, Scotland, before I was born. When I was ten or so, neighbours of my parent’s lifelong friends moved from Glasgow to Perth and we met them a few times but didn’t really see the Craigs that much.

A few years later in Toronto airport on the way back from our last family holiday, I told Dad that we were going to the bar where, of course, we bumped into the Craigs. We chatted and they told me to get in touch as they had a flat that I could rent in Glasgow where I was going to university. And so they became my landlords.

After university, I was working for a utility company in Perth without much purpose. It was then that Mr Craig, a Trustee of Perth & Kinross Carers’ Centre, approached me. A few months later, I began working as the press, funding and marketing officer for the Carers’ Centre.

I learnt so much during my two years there, professionally and personally, and then moved to manage a national fundraising team for The Princess Royal Trust for Carers.  After a couple of years, I moved down to London to become the charity’s policy officer and these blogs started mysteriously appearing.

However, for over three years I have been living in London whilst my girlfriend has been living in Perth, Scotland and we thought it would be good to live a little bit closer together. We had two ideas; Scotland or somewhere else.

Well, it seems that somewhere else got there first and in early February we fly out to Cambodia for 2 years. Through VSO, I’ll be working on educational policy for a group of charities there.

My life has changed because we bumped into the Craigs in Toronto airport, and it has continued to be shaped by some of the inspiring carers that I’ve met since. It has been my privilege to work for them. I am also aware that whilst I leave this job, and leave working for carers, there are many carers who do not have the choices and opportunities that I enjoy as illustrated by our Who Cares? application. It is these people who I feel that I have let down on occasion and am sorry to be leaving them.

This is not yet goodbye as there will be more posts before I leave late January and over the blog to my Director of Policy, Moira Fraser who has blogged here before. But as it is carers who I ultimately work for, I felt as though I should at least hand in my notice.

Thank you, and take good care

Gordon