Two Active Care Group staff members will take on an ultra-challenge in June across the Lake District to raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association. On June 8 – 9 Karen O’Leary and Georgia Tsiapa will each complete a course. Karen’s 100-kilometre course starts and finishes in Kendall and includes climbs of two thousand five hundred metres, whilst Georgia is tackling the 29-kilometre course with climbs of nine hundred metres.
Motor Neurone Disease (MND) affects up to five thousand adults in the UK at any one time. There is a one in three hundred risk of getting MND across a lifetime. MND affects the nerves known as motor neurones; these nerves are found in the brain and spinal cord and help tell muscles what to do. With MND, messages from the motor neurones gradually stop reaching the muscles. This leads the muscles to weaken, stiffen and waste, affecting how you walk, talk, eat, drink, and breathe. Some people also get changes to their thinking and behaviour, but the disease affects everyone differently.
The MND Association supports those who have been diagnosed with MND and their families through numerous services, including coordinating care for a person with MND at a care centre and funding vital research to help us find a cure and help support people living with MND now.
Georgia and Karen have chosen the Motor Neurone Disease Association as their charity for this challenge as it is close to both of their hearts. They both work with patients at Remeo (our respiratory centre in Surrey) who are affected by MND. They are hoping to raise more awareness and money for the charity that can support their patients’ quality of life.
As well as raising money for the charity, both Georgia and Karen are using this challenge to test their mental and physical strength. Karen wanted to push herself even further after completing an ultra-challenge last year and Georgia is challenging her fear of heights.
“I love walking and getting out, which helps me with that goal. Everything we can do is because we are strong in our minds, strong in our bodies, and strong together. It’s important to have that support, to help each other out with this, and to motivate each other.”
Karen O’Leary
Karen and Georgia are aiming to raise at least £1,000 for the Motor Neurone Disease Association, which would provide vital support within the MND community. We are pleased to say that they have reached their target and are continuing to raise even more funds for the charity and their vital work.
We wish Karen and Georgia the very best of luck!
You can view their fundraising page here.
