Abigail tells how she is running the London Marathon to raise funds in memory of her grandad Jim
“My grandad Jim was the kindest, bubbliest person ever. If you could think of all the things you would want your grandad to be, that was him.
“He was my best friend and I have so many happy memories of spending time with him and my gran Janette.
“My grandad was very active when he was younger. He was in the army and was stationed abroad with my gran for years. My mum Lisa was actually born in Germany before the family moved home to south Queensferry.
“I remember me and grandad would play badminton in the front garden, and how we’d ride on the top of a double decker bus for day trips to Edinburgh. He was so generous – if he was eating a bar of chocolate or a sweet he would always share half with you.
“I was around seven years old when he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. It started with him forgetting things, mixing up me and my sister’s names, and then his behaviour changed. It was a tough time for my gran and my mum. They cared for him at home as long as possible, until he moved to a care home.
“We made the most of the time we had with him, and I remember a big family trip to Berlin one Christmas when I was 14. His dementia was progressing then but you could see the joy on his face at being away with his family.
“Just a few years later, in 2022, grandad passed away aged 80. We all miss him so much.
“I’m 20 now and decided to run the London Marathon to raise money for Alzheimer Scotland in his memory. I think my grandad would’ve loved to have watched me as he was such a keen runner. We have photos of him taking part in races when he was stationed in Cyprus.
“The training has been a great motivator for me to get out and exercise and I have lots of friends and family coming down to London to support me. It’ll be a fantastic day.
“I want to raise as much awareness as possible for this illness. Alzheimer Scotland do such amazing work, and no one should have to deal with dementia alone.”
Thank you to Abigail for sharing her story in memory of her grandad Jim.
Massive good luck to Abigail and everyone else running the London Marathon!