When engineers from Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks' (SSEN) Elgin depot organised a temporary power outage as part of planned electricity work in the local community, little did they know the chosen day was the much-anticipated date for the annual Christmas lunch at Spynie Village Hall.
Shona Rowand, Chairperson of the Village Hall contacted SSEN to let local teams know the annual festive lunch, which attracts up to 100 elderly residents from Spynie and surrounding areas, was scheduled on the same day as the planned interruption to supplies. To ensure the celebrations went ahead as planned, SSEN's teams postponed work to minimise disruption to the local community.
Shona Horn, SSEN's Customer Relationship Manager for North Caledonia (North East and Shetland), said:
"When we found out the annual Christmas lunch was being held on the day of a planned outage, there was no question in our mind we would look to reschedule to allow the community of Spynie to enjoy their festive celebrations."
"We were delighted to receive an invite to the event, take along a Christmas cake on behalf of SSEN and look forward to meeting early next year when we'll be back to promote our free Priority Services for those who need extra support during a power cut."
Shona Rowand, Chairperson of Spynie Village Hall, added:
"We're very grateful to SSEN for postponing their power outage to allow our community to gather at the local village hall for the annual Christmas lunch. It's great that Shona and Brian could join us and help serve the food, and we look forward to welcoming them back in the future to hear how they can support those who need extra help in our community."