Sisters take steps to support mum
Two Thornhill sisters are set to walk across Scotland to raise money for their mother, who has been struck by early onset Alzheimer’s.
Helen Aitkenhead, 54, was diagnosed with the condition in December.
Her daughters Kate Carranza, 24, and Emily Aitkenhead, 26, plan to walk more than 170 miles this summer to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK.
Kate said: “She is quite young. People traditionally think of the elderly suffering from Alzheimer’s.
“I am a mental health nursing student, so know a bit about it. There is a lot of research going on just now.
“It might be that the end of the current research process will be too late for my mum but we want to support in any way we can.”
The family moved to the Stirling area more than two decades ago, originally living in Doune before settling in Thornhill.
Kate said: “My mum was a childminder and was a huge part of the community in Thornhill.
“The support from people here has been amazing. We have been very touched.”
This summer the family plan to do a double-header long distance walk from Milngavie to Inverness.
Kate and her team will be walking the first section along the West Highland Way to Fort William, starting on July 10. The walk is expected to take up to a week.
Emily, who is a high school music teacher in Edinburgh, and her team will then take over for the second section from Fort William to Inverness, starting on July 29.
“We haven’t been doing quite as much training as we hoped,” said Kate. “We do have some walks planned and will be going up Ben A’an.”
The family are getting close to reaching their fundraising target of £2500. To donate visit bit.ly/aitkenhead