Peterhead resident receives Fundraiser of the Year award

Michelle has raised a phenomenal £19k for Cure Parkinson’s over the past year

The award celebrates fundraisers who have gone ‘above and beyond’ to support the charity’s vital Parkinson’s research, and Michelle truly went the extra mile with her fundraising last year.

Michelle decided to raise funds for Cure Parkinson’s as it is a cause close to her heart; her father lives with Parkinson’s and she has found it incredibly difficult watching his condition deteriorate over the years.

Michelle said: “I chose to support Cure Parkinson’s as my Dad has suffered from the condition for 11 years. He’s at a palliative stage where nothing will help him now unfortunately. I see how he has ended up and it’s torture watching him suffer. He can’t even communicate. This is why I want to try help to raise funds for vital Parkinson’s research.”

So, in 2023, Michelle decided to sign up to run the 2024 TCS London Marathon for Cure Parkinson’s and began fundraising straight away. She set herself an ambitious fundraising target (which she smashed before 2023 had drawn to a close) and planned some wonderful events to raise money for and spread the word about Cure Parkinson’s important work. So far Michelle has raised over £19,300 for the charity – and she hasn’t even ran the marathon yet!

Although balancing a full time job, organizing fundraising events and training for a marathon has been tough, Michelle has found the process very rewarding. A particular highlight for Michelle was her ‘Soup and a Sweet’ fundraiser; a lunch event open to the community with homemade soups, puddings, toffee and fudge on offer. The event proved so popular that she had to create more space to accommodate everyone who came along, and raised around £2,600 that afternoon alone.

Michelle continued: “The support I received from the community of Peterhead was overwhelming and I can’t thank everyone enough. It feels very emotional to have raised this amount for a charity that is very close to my heart.”

With the London Marathon taking place on April 21, Michelle has been training hard to prepare for the epic 26.2 mile race and is looking forward to the big day: “I’m feeling nervous and excited about the marathon. I’ve been following an intermediate training plan and also doing a lot of swimming. I’m no athlete but I’ll get there!”

Cure Parkinson’s is extremely grateful to Michelle for her incredible support of the charity, and wish her the best of luck at the 2024 TCS London Marathon.

Helen Matthews, CEO, said: “We would all like to say thank you to Michelle for her dedication to raising funds and awareness for our research, and a huge congratulations to her for being a joint winner of our Fundraiser of the Year Award!”

If you would like to donate to Michelle’s fundraiser visit: 2024tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/michelle-gillies