Sixty’s the magic number for Fran on fundraising challenge

Fran Loots, from Comrie in Perthshire, has topped her 60th munro in 60 days leading up to her 60th birthday, to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and money for MND Scotland.

Fran, who was born in Zambia and attended school in Manchester, works for Scottish Orienteering and moved from Fife to Comrie 15 years ago. She is married to Grant (65) and the couple are parents to Catriona (28) and Cameron (24).

She was spurred to take action when a close friend, who would frequently join her on the hills, was diagnosed with the fatal condition.

MND is a rapidly progressing terminal illness, which stops signals from the brain reaching the muscles. This can cause someone to lose the ability to walk, talk, eat, drink, and breathe unaided.

Fran said: “My friend doesn’t want to be identified right now, but she’s 100% behind what I’m doing to raise money and awareness for the charity. The support from MND Scotland has been first class and has made such a difference to her.

“We met through mutual friends some 25 years ago so we’ve shared a lot over the years. We’ve been on trips to Rum together, and to other mountains across Scotland, and she supported me when I was training to become a mountain leader, by joining me on camping expeditions.

“I’ve managed to raise over £3,500 so far and I’ve had fabulous support from a range of people including my family. On my final munro, which was Meall Nan Tarmachan near Killin, I had some 25 people with me, and 20 others have joined me on my various other munros to date.

“When I started in May, the weather had been unseasonably cold, so it was a bit of a challenge with wind, rain, hail, sleet, and snow, so I had my gloves and waterproofs on most days.”

Iain McWhirter, Head of Fundraising at MND Scotland, said: “I’d like to thank Fran for all she’s doing to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease and the incredible amount she has managed to raise for MND Scotland.

“MND Scotland is the leading charity in Scotland providing physical, emotional, and financial support to people living with MND – as well as funding cutting-edge research into a cure.

“We wouldn’t be able to do any of this work if it wasn’t for people like Fran who has been willing to take on new challenges and push herself to the limit to raise money. I’m grateful for all that she’s done to help support her friend and others like her in Scotland affected by MND.”

If you would like to support Fran, you can sponsor her on her JustGiving page.

Photo credit: Dave Valentine