A summer tea party, with Victorian sandwiches, strawberries and cream, was held at Maggie’s Highlands on 15 June 2010 to mark the centre’s fifth birthday.

Supporters heard firsthand about the huge difference that Maggie’s Highlands has made over the last five years to the people affected by cancer living in the region and looked towards a bright future for the facility, which includes the opening of a new garden on site.

Birthday party guests were treated to the first reading in Scotland by Charles Jencks from his latest book, The Architecture of Hope. Inspirational architecture is integral to Maggie's, as explored in Charles' latest book.

Furthermore, Page \ Park Architects’ Andy Bateman, who worked on the design of Maggie’s Highlands, attended the birthday party, giving a speech on the history and design of the beautiful building.

Maggie’s Highlands was opened by Carol McGregor and Health Minister Andy Kerr in June 2004. The centre – the fourth of six Maggie’s Centres – has seen a growth of approximately 20 per cent in visitor numbers since the doors opened five years ago.

Maggie’s Highlands Centre Head Carole Bridge said: “This is a most wonderful day. Over the five years we have seen such courage and dignity as people face one of life’s most difficult challenges.  We aim for everyone who comes into our centre to leave feeling more hopeful and determined.  I will not deny that there have been times of sadness, but overwhelmingly, this is a place of joy and laughter.  I am honoured that we are here to offer such support to the people of the Highlands and Islands and feel humbled by the strength of humanity that I see in here everyday.”

Whilst the party provided the chance to recognise the vital work that has taken place over the past five years at the centre, it also offered the opportunity to look towards a bright future for the centre, including the expansion of services – which is only made possible through support from the local community and beyond.

Two of Maggie’s corporate supporters present today were SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy) and the People’s Postcode Lottery.

SSE has been a great supporter of Maggie’s Centres across the UK. In Inverness specifically, SSE has funded the role of Judith Ross, Maggie’s Community Fundraiser in the Highlands, for a three-year period. Furthermore, they have entered scores of teams into Maggie’s Monster Bike and Hike over the years, held various fundraising events, and volunteered at lots of events for the centre, including Belladrum Music Festival.

Maggie’s Centres across Scotland are one of the founding charities of the People’s Postcode Lottery.   The charity lottery today presented a cheque for an astonishing £1.2million to Maggie’s Centres, which is the total amount raised by PPL for Maggie's since launching in January 2008. The £1.2m goes towards the running costs of the six Maggie's Centres in Scotland.