Page 10 - Foundation400: After 5 years

Where we

want to be

The ambition of Foundation400 is to financially secure the
Foundation forever.
Kuzamium Protecting the Foundation will enable children who have lost
a mum or a dad to benefit from all that Heriot’s has to offer
Foundationer, S4
for generations to come.

To secure George’s vision, we must build an endowment for
the Foundation of £15 million. This endowment would in
Joining Heriot’s as a nine-year-old, I was apprehensive
and anxious. I remember my two brothers and I getting turn generate a dividend of sufficient amount to fund 58.5%
up at 6:15am that first morning, getting dressed, boarding of the projected annual costs of the Foundation. This would
the train into Edinburgh, and walking up to an enormous represent a significant change in the current funding streams,
castle that we would be calling school from then on. reducing School fees contributions from 93.4% (the level in
My father had passed on nine months earlier, and 2015) to 36.5%.
consequently a lot of things had changed in my life.
Moving school was one of these changes, and will always The only way we will achieve this is through the continued
be one I am grateful for.
generosity of the Heriot’s community.
Honestly, I don’t remember much else of that day; the
only other memory I hold is of my primary five teacher,
Miss Walker, asking me at the end of my first day how I
had found it, and if I had managed to make new friends.
Normally quite timid and shy, I simply beamed at her,
nodding. The six years that ensued enabled me to enjoy
so many great experiences and saw me grow to become
a stronger, more positive, and more confident individual.
Heriot’s has since become a place that brings me joy in
learning and has been a breeding ground for many great
friendships, memories, and lifelong experiences.

And now reflecting on the years I have spent at this school
(fortunately, I still have three left!) brings many emotions:
happiness and contentment, but most importantly,
gratitude. My time at Heriot’s would not be possible if it
were not for the legacy of George Heriot himself, which
is now being continued by the school’s foundation and
those who donate to it. The generosity of those within the
Heriot’s community presented me with a life-changing
opportunity at a time of great pain and uncertainty in
my life. I will always be appreciative of this. This spirit of
kindness and benevolence has proven central to the Heriot
community’s values.
Being at Heriot’s has enabled me to connect with many
amazing people and dedicated teachers, which is setting
the foundation for me to pursue my career aspirations,
while nurturing and reinforcing values into my life that
have and will guide me in the future. For this, I will eternally
be grateful. Grateful that George Heriot set up this
establishment 400 years ago to help those who had also
lost a parent, and grateful that today this work is still
changing and benefiting people’s lives, including my own.

Kuzamium, Foundationer

Foundation400 5 year report