Alliance Healthcare UK team members Nick Atkins, Swansea Service Centre Manager, and Karl Goodall, Swansea Driver Team Manager, have climbed Pen y Fan in South Wales to support the Alzheimer's Society and raise money for dementia. The pair raised over £1,500, a cause close to Nick's heart, as his mother is a dementia patient.
Dementia mainly affects people aged 65 and over, with 65 per cent of the 944,000 individuals living with dementia in the UK being women. Nick and Karl, dressed as 'glamorous grannies' with wigs, tights, and dresses, completed the mountain trek in six hours, carrying an Alliance Healthcare medicines cool box weighing over 35 kg.
Alzheimer's Society supports people with dementia and their carers through national care and research efforts. Alzheimer's Society Cymru is the sole UK dementia charity funding both biomedical and care research.
“We are delighted that Nick and Karl from Alliance Healthcare scaled Pen Y Fan as ‘glamourous grannies’ to raise funds and awareness, particularly when Nick is directly affected by dementia,” Alzheimer's Society Cymru said in a statement. “With over 50,000 people living with dementia in Wales and 900,000 across the UK, there has never been more important time to support our work.”
“We decided to dress up as glamorous elderly ladies to bring attention to the demographic that are most affected by the disease,” said Nick. “Raising money for Alzheimer’s Society is very close to my heart as my mother is currently in the later stages of this horrible disease. It’s great that every penny raised through this event will go to such a worthy cause.”
In May, Alliance Healthcare UK supported the Medicine to Ukraine campaign by coordinating a country-wide poster drop to UK pharmacy stores through its distribution network. The company has previously supported several similar leaflet drops in support of pharmacy campaigns, including the NHS "Stay Well This Winter" campaign.
“After doing many charity events previously I now needed a different challenge,” Goodall added. “When Nick and I spontaneously came up with this unique idea I knew it would be a sure way to raise money and awareness for such a great cause.”
Pen y Fan, located in the Brecon Beacons National Park, is the highest British peak south of the Cadair Idris in Snowdonia, with an elevation of 886 metres above sea level.
