Thank you for taking the time to visit our Justgiving page. The four of us - Laura, Tim, Gemma and Bobby - are fundraising for the Motor Neurone Disease Association as it's a cause very close to our hearts. Jackie, Mum to Laura and Gemma (mother-in-law to Bobby and Tim) was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in January 2022.

Motor Neurone Disease (MND) also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS - (you may remember the viral ice bucket challenge in 2014) - occurs when specialist nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, called motor neurones, stop working properly. This is known as neurodegeneration. MND is an incredibly cruel and frightening illness - there's no cure, it simply takes you bit by bit.

To see the person you love deteriorate is almost too difficult to articulate or comprehend - it’s simply heart-breaking.

Sadly, after a 13 month battle, Jackie passed away on Wednesday 22 February 2023 with her family by her side. Nothing could have prepared us for that day and the impact she leaves on our lives will be forever felt.

We’ll be running 26.2 miles at the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon on Sunday May 14, 2023. It’s a new marathon in honour of the Leeds Rhino Legend Rob Burrow who was diagnosed with the disease in December 2019. You can watch and learn more about Rob and MND via this link.

Official training plans are now well under way, new trainers have been broken in and the frustrations of old injuries already felt, but we’re all committed to making it to that finish line. Gemma has run a marathon before, so we’d put our odds on her completing it first (although she's popped a couple of kids out since then!) The rest of us are novices, so this really will be a challenge - painful but so worthwhile. We've also heard there's a particularly challenging hill at mile 17 – 19 – eek! 

THANK YOU for your support. 

£120 could provide an overbed table, making it easier for someone with MND to eat, drink and read safely and comfortably in bed

£500 could provide a tablet device with specialist communication software, allowing someone to communicate with loved ones

Every penny raised from The Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon will bring us closer to achieving our ultimate mission; a world free from MND.