Help Brian Live Fully with MND #WestWarriorsMND

Brian is a kind, funny, and generous man — a loving Dad, husband, friend, and someone who has always helped others and put other people first - now it’s our turn to be there for him.

His whole life, Brian has been fit, healthy and very sporty and consequently did not consider the need for life insurance. He played football for Aberystwyth University and played tennis, squash, cricket, lacrosse and table tennis to name but a few. After university, he played 5-a-side and then switched to running, becoming part of Macclesfield Harriers and running up to 1000 miles regularly per year. In 2024, he ran the London Marathon, and parkrun has become a firm Saturday morning favourite, with Elsa and Daniel making it a team event. As a family, we like nothing better than going for a walk in the countryside or at a National Trust property.

Brian first developed minor hand spasms in Jan 2023 and then in May 2024 weakness began in his left hand. He still didn’t think anything of this, and it was investigated purely as perhaps a minor irritation from regularly playing darts. In September 2024, he started getting random twitches throughout his body and various muscle spasms for no reason.

At the end of 2024, Brian had his first neurology appointment. After a lot of tests and retests, to allow the disease to progress and for other neurological conditions to be discounted, on 14th April 2025 we received the heartbreaking news… Brian was formally diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), a terminal progressive and currently incurable condition that affects the motor neurons, the nerves that control voluntary muscles.

Brian is left handed and his left arm and hand are already impacted, with muscle wastage, loss of strength and limited ability to do tasks that require fine control. Additionally, constant random twitching and muscle spasms are always there. As the disease progresses and motor neurons die, muscles will weaken and waste away, removing the ability to run, walk, talk, eat and breathe.

We are now all adjusting to a new life-changing reality — one filled with many hospital appointments as he is cared for, for the rest of his life by the hospital MND multi-disciplinary team and with the difficult knowledge that our remaining time together as a family is limited. We take solace from the fact that we know we have many friends who will help and support the whole family going forward.

The West Warriors are rallying together to support Brian and his family through this challenging journey. Funds raised will go towards medical care, mobility aids, home adaptations, and helping Brian live as comfortably and fully as possible. Every donation, no matter how big or small, brings us one step closer to easing the burden and showing Brian he’s not alone. Please join the fight—stand strong with the West Warriors!

To begin our fundraising in the year of MND diagnosis, we as a community are looking to complete a challenge to run and walk 2025 miles before the year ends. Anyone can let us know how many miles they have covered towards the total. You can also come up with your own fundraising activities to help. We will provide updates throughout the year on our fundraising progress. Please use the GoFundMe page link to share with your friends and family and help us towards our target of £50,000 to help #WestWarriors MND.

Here are some of the things that your generous donations will help with:

Equipment & Aids

• Wheelchair (manual and eventually electric)

• Walker

• Orthotics or splints (e.g., wrist, foot drop)

• Adjustable bed or hospital-style bed

• Hoists, slings, and transfer equipment

• Adaptive cutlery, dressing aids.

Home Modifications

• Ramp installations and Stairlift

• Bathroom changes (accessible shower/washdry toilet)

• Widening doors for wheelchair access

• Lowering countertops, adding grab bars

Communication Support

• Speech therapy

• Communication aids (apps, dedicated speech-generating devices, voice controlled software, voice banking)

• Eye-tracking or switch controls if speech is lost

• Adaptive mouse, keyboard and foot pedal

Personal & Home Care

• Apexneuro – cutting edge neurorehab based near Macclesfield and not available through the NHS or MNDA funding.

• Overnight or 24/7 care as condition progresses

• Respite care for loved ones

Making Memories