The owner of Aberdeen’s only five-star hotel has flung the kitchen sink at any obstacles in his path over the last half a century.
And now, Stewart Spence, the redoubtable character in charge of the Marcliffe Hotel at Pitfodels, is determined to fling the kitchen table in the direction of those who want to join a massive fundraising effort to help a cancer charity.
Mr Spence has a personal interest in backing Maggie’s Kitchen Table Day, which is designed to persuade family, friends, work colleagues and even complete strangers to organise a get together on February 26.
After all, he lost his daughter, Jackie, to the disease when she was only 35 back in 2009. And that tragic memory is one of the driving forces behind him becoming an ambassador for both the Maggie’s charity and the fundraiser which is taking place later this month.
He said: “I’ve always supported Maggie’s Centre and I will never forget the circumstances of how Jackie learned she had cancer.
“I was playing golf and I had no idea how ill she was. She kept it to herself and, at the time, there was nothing like the Maggie’s Centre to provide support to people who suddenly received that awful news.
“But Maggie’s do a fabulous job and I am 100% behind this Kitchen Table initiative. We want people to organise anything and everything they can from coffee mornings to dinner parties, bingo sessions to puzzle competitions, jam tastings to bake offs – anything where they can get together and both enjoy themselves and do something to help a really terrific cause.”
Mr Spence and his son Ross, who is head chef at the Marcliffe, are now looking forward to hosting a grand meal for their contribution to the cause.
He said: “We are planning a theme called Five Decades of Food, which will include courses from five different places where I have worked.
“These are the Station Hotel in Aberdeen, Fouquets in Paris, the Atholl Hotel in Aberdeen, Invery House in Banchory and, obviously, the Marcliffe itself.
“We’re really looking forward to it. But I want to encourage as many people across the north east to be creative, enjoy themselves and do what they can to help Maggie’s.”
Further information can be found at
https://www.maggiescentres.org/campaigns/kitchen-table-day