Dear all,

 

Thank you for visiting my Just Giving page. Let me tell you a little bit about what this is all about.

Well I have decided to do the Amsterdam marathon!! For some reason running a marathon has been a long held ambition of mine. I know, I question my sanity too. However not only is this a great opportunity to cause myself suffering and hopefully a flat stomach and certain amount of pride, it is also a chance to raise some money for something I believe in.

Once I had my place in the run I got to thinking, what do I raise money for. What really means something and who needs the cash? I have come to the conclusion that the Alzheimer's Society is the one for me and hopefully for you too. I could feed you a load of scarey stats now about how many people suffer and how little is being spent on research and how likely it is that you or someone you know will be effected. I won't, but I would like to share this.

In the second world war there was a young beautiful women who dating a local young man. He wouldn't go to war unless she married him, so she did. 5 years she spent not knowing if he was alive or dead. As it happened he had died in a Japanese POW camp. However in this camp he met a friend Ralph. Now Ralph saved this young man's belongings including a photograph of his young wife. Ralph later said it was this photograph that got him through the horror of the POW camp. He returned to the UK and got the train down from Scotland to Yorkshire to return his friend's belongings to his young widow. When he got off the train and saw Freda he said that was when he knew he would marry her.

They enjoyed a long and happy marriage, but sadly by their diamond wedding anniversary when Ralph sent her 60 red roses to celebrate, she no longer knew it was her anniversary. If you told her she couldn't remember. Ralph struggled to care for her, as she would forget more and more. One of the stories we found amusing while tragic was that she used to hide the pension money, she kept changing the hiding place. He had to keep searching the house to find their money. This was made so much harder by the fact he was registered blind. He dealt with accusations, the harsh words and the loss of the strong and wonderful woman he had known, loving her until the day he died. When we told her he had died she was heart broken, we told her again on the day of his funeral, she was heart broken again and again as we had to keep telling her through the day. My Grandma is still with us, she doesn't recognise me anymore, but if you sit holding her hand she is happy. She held us all together throughout her life it is odd to see her so changed, but she has the same beautiful eyes, warmth and love of music she has always had.

The fact I have seen my Grandparents story makes the difficulites of Alzheimer's very real to me, if not a little scarey. One can only hope that through research we can help prevent some many cases. If nothing else at least support can be provided to suffers and families.

Please dig deep for this great cause, it will certainly help motive me as the pain kicks in and I still have another 21 miles left to go....

 

Thanks for anything you can donate

 

Love

Fi

 

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So please dig deep and donate now.