Taking a hike to aid research into Alzheimer's disease

TWO women will be taking to the hills to try and boost the coffers of a charity paying for vital disease research.

Angela Watson (56) and Debra Roe (57) will spend three weeks trekking the Pennine Way in September to support Alzheimer’s Research UK.

Their 267-mile walk will take them from Kirk Yetholm in Scotland to Edale in Derbyshire, and starts on September 10.

The pair expect to be walking 12 to 15 miles per day and are already in training.

Angela, of Broom Lane in Broom, is no stranger to fundraising and has raised more than £10,000 in recent years for the charity.

In the past, she has organised events such as themed nights based on the 1940s and 1950s and Rocky Horror, an afternoon tea dance, a children’s Halloween party and a St Patrick’s Day bash.

But she admitted to being slightly worried about the mammoth challenge ahead.

She said: “To be honest I am a little but apprehensive but we feel a little bit reassured because we did Jacob’s Ladder recently (a steep walk in the High Peak district of Derbyshire) and we got to the top.

“I do like walking. We are in training. We are doing the Derbyshire area because it has more arduous trails.”

Angela said that for the first week of the Pennine Way walk, she and Debra, of Main Street in Greasbrough, would be supported by friends and stay in a caravan, but the next two weeks would see them resting at bed and breakfast venues and youth hostels.

Angela is raising cash for Alzheimer’s Research UK after experiencing her dad George Clements and cousins succumbing to the disease, while Debra’s mother-in-law, Doris Roe, has Alzheimer’s. 

Angela said: “I think there are a lot of people affected by Alzheimer’s disease. That’s why we were wanting to help the research side of it because we need to halt the disease.”

Debra added: “We aim to raise as much money as possible through the walk to help fund research into future treatments to halt the progression of this degenerative disease.” 

The plucky pair can be sponsored via www.justgiving.com/fundraising/angeanddebs.

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