Memorial walk for our Taid, David Cunnah

Hi, my name is Kate and together with my cousins we are completing a memorial walk for our late Taid, David Cunnah, on Sunday 16th April who sadly passed away in July 2022 after a long but inspiring battle with Parkinson’s. The walk will take place in Llangollen and our friends and family are invited to join us.

We wanted to share a bit about our Taid whose true passion was walking, locally in North Wales as well as abroad in France and Spain. Taid especially loved walking up mountains with his best friend Dewi, as well as with his children and grandchildren. Walking was a daily activity that Taid spent most of his time doing. He’d always have a packed lunch with sandwiches and a pork pie and would be sure to tell you he knew a short cut that would take you just around the corner even if he’d never been there before. He believed walking was for everyone and would make sure everyone had a good time, so this walk is for any of our friends and family who wishes to join us to celebrate our Taid, David.

Taid’s specialty was walking and it really was the best medicine he ever took. He has always loved walking but It truly gave him a new lease on life after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s in the late 90s. Over the past 30 ish years Taid must have been on hundreds of walks if not thousands and it’s what we as a family credit his amazing achievement of beating Parkinson’s for so long. His passion for local history and walks is his legacy that we all want to carry forward.

Taid was conscious that Parkinson’s is a deadly disease and has a huge impact on people’s lives and dedicated a lot of time for fundraising for the Parkinson’s charity which focuses mostly on research. We think that it is only fitting that In addition to the memorial walk we would give a donation in his memory to help local people who are living with Parkinson’s. I have reached out to a local community group called Friends of Parkies, based in St Martins for people living with Parkinson’s and their family members who support them and we will be donating any money gathered to them.

Some of the members of this group are waiting for a Charco Neurotech Cue1 device, that is a non-invasive wearable device for people with Parkinson’s. Its aim is to alleviate freezing and improve motor function for its user and helps give a bit of independence back with everyday tasks most people take for granted, such as eating independently and writing. Over the last few years Taid suffered from freezing and tremors that impacted his ability to do what he loved most, walking and this device would have been a lifeline if he was still with us.

We would be grateful if you would consider donating in our Taid’s memory to help create a positive legacy inspired by his passion for walking.

your support is greatly appreciated, all our love,

the Cunnah grandchildren xx