THE MICAH PROJECT
Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly
Gill Sherry
When local councils were forced to withdraw their community services because of the lockdown in 2020, it’s fair to say that charitable church groups were among the first to react and step in.
This was certainly the case at St Meddan’s in Troon where family worker, Helen Hogg, and her moderator husband, Rev. James Hogg, volunteered. They also found themselves responding to those much further afield when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, taking three cars to Poland to assist with relief efforts.
As a direct result of these two large-scale crises, The Micah Project was born, becoming an official charity in November 2022.
Founder, visionary and CEO, Helen, tells me more about those early days.
“We were still working out of St Meddan’s at this point… until we grew bigger. We found new premises in West Portland Street in Troon, opening in June 2025. We call it our Donations Hub. We also have a large office area in Stevenston which is used as a working hub and storage facility.”
I ask Helen about the services provided by the charity and who benefits.
“Our core aim is to help families thrive. We operate across all of Ayrshire. Child poverty figures within Ayrshire are extreme and we found ourselves with families who were struggling. The food banks had those emergency food provisions covered… but there was still a gap where families couldn’t access food if they were not at emergency level but needed something to tide them over.”
The Micah Project collects food surplus from the Co-op and puts out items such as bread, pastries, and vegetables which are still usable and would otherwise have been destroyed.
“That has worked particularly well at the hub in Troon. It destigmatises the need but also helps sustainability. Helping people realise that they can take these things because there’s an environmental benefit to it is a great message.”
Helen doesn’t believe that those facing hardship should feel they have to justify their need for assistance.
“I don’t like that side of things. There are people who don’t want to rely on the benefit system. They may be working and trying their hardest… but they’re on the precipice and just need a bit of help. They want to pay their way but can’t afford the prices.”
It was this realisation that led to Helen looking into pre-loved clothes.
“We started doing bags of good quality clothes. Now one of the major things we do is Mystery Clothes Boxes for children. It provides a minimum of two T-shirts, and two bottoms. Volunteers curate everything and make sure the tops match the bottoms to ensure you can make several outfits from one box.”
Anyone can buy a Mystery Clothes Box from the hub for a nominal fee of £10.
“It makes it accessible to anybody. It’s a very dignified price point and gives it a tangible quality. But we also run a thing called Micah Pay.”
This pay-it-forward scheme has proved invaluable for the charity. When someone donates £5, it goes into a shared pot which allows someone else to access a Mystery Clothes Box for free.
Of course, all charities rely heavily on volunteers and The Micah Project is no different. There are currently over 70 volunteers, from children to retirees, with skill sharing and intergenerational work very much encouraged.
“I hadn’t realised how many of our volunteers were isolated. They come because they’ve made good friends, and that’s the whole heart of what we do. They work hard but we always stop for tea and toast. We put our volunteers right at the very centre of what we do.”
What kind of work do the volunteers undertake?
“Some work at home doing ironing. We have a sewing team who take scrap fabric and make sock monkeys or passport covers – we don’t want anything going to landfill. Some volunteers do deliveries. We try and find what each volunteer is passionate about and what makes them tick. That’s what will help them embrace what they’re doing.”
New volunteers are always welcome, as are donations of the following: good quality clothes (aged 0-15), new toys, Lego, soft toys, books, bedding (but no feathered duvets), and of course, monetary donations are appreciated.
Having received a generous grant for North Ayrshire, the charity is currently preparing P1 Starter Packs for every child beginning a new P1 term within Irvine.
“These are boxes of new school clothes and beautiful knitted teddies. They’re super popular because they level the playing field because everybody gets the same.”
What started as a community programme during the Covid pandemic, has grown into a lifeline for many families within Ayrshire. As CEO, Helen is already looking ahead to ensure that lifeline continues.
“Eventually, we want to be in a position where we’re not just supported by grants. Ideally, we’d love businesses and people to be contributing to us because of the green factor, more than the poverty factory. We would like to be a place where you are able to get what you need at the time that you need it because your community is supporting it.”
Helen also hopes to open a Wellbeing Centre which would work alongside other support agencies. In fact, she’s investigating the possibility of it being a mobile operation enabling the charity to reach those in remote villages as well as in bigger towns.
To conclude our conversation, Helen tells me about the origins of the charity’s name.
“Micah is a book in the bible. A prophet is having a conversation with God… and God says, ‘I want you to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly.’ So that is our tag line, because it’s about how we live as a community and how we we serve our community.”
If you would like to volunteer with
or donate to The Micah Project,
you can find more information at
www.micahproject.co.uk or by sending an email to admin@micahproject.co.uk
