Great-granny walks 5k a day for cancer charity

Moyra Fullerton (82), who is isolating at the moment with her daughter Bernie McKevitt and family in Glenavy, aims to raise a fantastic £1,000 for the local charity.

Bernie said: “Mammy lost daddy, Joe, over four years ago to lung cancer.

‘‘My sister Moyra (Barnes) was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the end of October and recently had her last session of chemo and is thankfully now on her way to recovery. Mammy wanted to raise some funds to help others going through cancer and to help them beat it.

“I was telling mammy how charities are struggling with marathons and other events being cancelled and she decided she would like to do this for Cancer Focus NI.”

Moyra, who has 10 children, 28 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, also aimed to improve her own fitness – she wanted to increase her walking distance from 2 miles to 3.2miles (5K).

Bernie added: “Mammy is quite fit for her age, though 5k a day is a challenge for her. She always finds the last mile tough, especially on the warm days, but she’s doing really well. So far her personal best is a fantastic 5km in less than 53 minutes.”

Rosie Forsythe, Cancer Focus NI, said: ‘‘Due to COVID-19, we have, unfortunately, had to greatly reduce our care services for the time being.

“We rely hugely on the public to provide over 90% of our income.

‘‘Regrettably, we have also had to cancel or postpone our fundraising events and our income has dramatically reduce, so we are truly grateful to Moyra for taking up this amazing challenge. We are very impressed by her efforts and we think she’s just wonderful.’’

*If you would like to make a donation to Moyra’s walk please go to Bernadette McKevitt’s justgiving page.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Alistair Bushe

Editor