I just wanted to say how much this post meant to me as my Mother was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease.  Thank you so much Mandy, for sharing it with us all.  And now, I give you Mandy Allen………

Do you do things for others?

I decided to have a break from the usual posts about ebay and Internet Marketing today. 

This month my friend, Ros Surtees, is 50.  In 2007 Ros decided that she wanted to celebrate turning 50 with a huge event, and the Ailsa Craig Challenge was born.  Over the last two years Ros has been preparing for this challenging 10 mile swim across a choppy body of sea water.  Sessions in the pool, sessions in the sea, swimming across lochs and other bodies of open water, paddling a kayak to build muscle, and regular runs have made up the bulk of her training for the great swim.  And all of this has been diligently maintained for a whole two years. 

There has been a committee of people working behind the scenes for this event.  Over the last two years a great number of fund raising events have been organised by this committee and so the total raised for Alzheimer’s Scotland and The Scottish Dementia Working Group by the Ailsa Craig Challenge team is no doubt going to be vast.

On Saturday Ros will set out from the island of Ailsa Craig and swim across the channel to Girvan, Scotland.  A welcoming committee on her arrival will include a group of African Drummers (Ros is the Chairperson of this group) and plenty of friends, family and other supporters to cheer her in.  On Saturday evening there will be a grand celebratory event in her home town of Kirkcolm, and I dare say we will be advised of the running total of funds raised from the Challenge.

What a way to celebrate your 50^th birthday!

If you would like to make a donation, no matter how small, please visit http://www.ailsacraigswimchallenge.moonfruit.com.  If you would like to read Ros’s blog that documents her training since she began in 2007 then please visit http://www.rossurtees.blogspot.com/. 

Enjoy the journey.

http://mandyallen.com