Keeping the Fire Burning – Operation Cairngorms

Aim

Winter Warrior Fund, this supports OPCG through the winter period. The coldest and darkest time and when people need connection the most!

Operation Cairngorms – Veteran-led, mission-first
www.opcairngorms.org

Keeping the Fire Burning

Veterans never pay to come on our retreats.

In 2026 we supported over 160 Veterans with our residential courses.

Where your money goes:

Free places, real costs. We never charge veterans to attend. But every place still costs money: food, fuel, kit, insurance and instructors. Your donations and sponsorship cover those costs.

Operation Cairngorms is a veteran-led Community Interest Company based on a 50-acre woodland at Knockiehill, near Tarland in Aberdeenshire. Since 2021 we've run retreats, bushcraft and peer support for serving personnel, veterans, reservists, emergency services and their families.

We're not an adventure centre. We do less, with purpose. People cook together, gather wood, sleep in yurts and bell tents, and have space to reset among people who understand.

Some of the most important conversations happen around a campfire. A veteran who hasn't spoken about it in years. A dad who finally puts his phone down and builds a shelter with his kids. A group of strangers who leave as a unit.

Why we need you now

Grants pay for specific projects and they are so hard to achieve as a small organisation. They rarely pay for the extra place when someone can't afford it, the kit that wears out, or the site that needs looking after. They rarely cover the safeguarding, insurance and planning behind every retreat.

We're restructuring to make Operation Cairngorms sustainable for the long term. While we do that, this fund keeps the fire lit: one place supporters can give all year round, instead of a new appeal every time something breaks.

What it's already doing

In August 2026 we ran a family retreat with Veterans Housing Scotland for 28 people: veterans, partners and children. All five families who filled in our feedback form:

• rated the retreat 5 out of 5
• scored it 10 out of 10 for recommending it to others
• said it exceeded their expectations

"Perfect and needed – reset button complete."

"A fantastic opportunity to unplug from modern life and get to know your kids in a different setting."

"It did wonders for my mental health and helping aid in my recovery." – Veteran, via Lothians Veterans Centre

"The impact of our collaboration has been far greater than the sum of our individual parts." – Pauline Cherrington, CEO, Lothians Veterans Centre

We've also delivered residentials with Scottish Veterans Residences, Lothians Veterans Centre and the Defence Gardens Scheme, and our work has been recognised with a Gold at the Scottish Veterans Awards.

Where your money goes

• Funded places. The people who need a retreat most often can't afford one. You remove that barrier.
• Kit. Outdoor kit takes a beating in a Scottish woodland. This season we had to replace four bell tents at a cost of £2,900, and with no grant to cover it, that came out of the margin we'd planned to reinvest. Our tarps are next: they're worn and need replacing before next season. Donations also cover cooking gear, archery and bushcraft equipment, and spare sleeping bags for people who arrive without one.
• The site. Shelters, seating, toilets, washing facilities and woodland paths, kept safe and welcoming.
• The work behind the scenes. Safeguarding, insurance, planning and admin. Nobody sees it, but no retreat happens without it.

Ways to give:

• Donate what you can. Every pound goes into the fund.
• £25 – Brew & Kindling. Keeps the fire lit and the kettle on for a group around the camp kitchen.
• £50 – Kit Fund. Helps replace worn kit like our tarps, ready for the next group.
• £100 – A Day in the Woods. Covers the running costs of a day’s session for a veteran.
• £250 – Two Nights. Covers the full cost of a veteran’s two-night retreat. They pay nothing.
• £1,000+ – Business Sponsor. Covers four two-night places. Talk to us about how your support fits your ESG and social value goals, including woodland and environmental work on our site.

Take on a challenge for us

CHAD1000X 

This Remembrance, members of The Unit are taking on CHAD1000X: 1,000 weighted step-ups in memory of US Navy SEAL Chad Wilkinson, and in support of everyone carrying the invisible wounds of service.

Many of them have chosen to donate to Operation Cairngorms as part of their effort. It's one community standing up for another, and we're grateful to every one of them.

Taking part? Donate here, or set up your own fundraising page for this project and ask friends to back your 1,000 steps.

If you have another challenge planned and want to show your support a small veterans organisation that actually does big things please get in contact.

A word from our founder

When I left the Army, I spent alot if time searching for a place and a purpose, I found what I needed in the woods: space to think, work for my hands, and people around me who understood. Operation Cairngorms grew from that.

Since 2021, I’ve watched veterans, serving personnel, and their families arrive carrying a lot and leave a bit lighter. I’m proud that we’ve never charged a veteran to come through our gate, and proud of the support our team gives every person who sits round our fire.

What I’m proudest of is the community we’ve built. It’s made up of the partners who trust us, the volunteers who turn up, the supporters who give, and the people who come back to help the next group in.

We’re only getting started. With your support, we’ll keep the fire burning and reach more of the people who need it.

Stuart Wright
Founder, Operation Cairngorms

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 21st January 2027 at 3:39pm