Vicky Pattison to take part in ‘Trek26 Stonehenge’

The telly star is helping promote the work of Alzheimer’s Society in memory of her granddad.

TV personality, author, podcast host and presenter Vicky Pattison is set to join thousands of fundraisers embarking on a gruelling 13 or 26-mile trek to raise vital funds for Alzheimer’s Society this summer.

The former I’m a Celebrity Winner will don her walking boots at the charity’s Trek26 Stonehenge event on 3 September alongside her new fiancé Ercan Ramadan. In an emotional Instagram post in February, Pattison revealed her beloved granddad, David Birdsey, passed away aged 92. He was diagnosed with dementia in 2010.

“You were the best granda I could have ever asked for and I feel incredibly grateful to you for everything you taught me and all the beautiful memories you gave me.

 “You taught me the importance of hard work, kindness, and above all else family values. I promise to honour your memory and live in a way that I know would make you proud- travelling lots, having adventures and putting my family first.

 “In your memory, I will continue to support, raise money and awareness for the amazing Alzheimer’s Society in any way that I can – no one should have to watch their beautiful family members slowly fade away through that awful disease.”

Pattison is encouraging others to join her by signing up for an epic 13 or 26-mile trek in one of seven breath-taking locations around the UK. The Stonehenge route will take in historic landscape dominated by the world-famous stone circle of Stonehenge, including water meadows, high ridges and quiet woodland, as well as Salisbury’s 13th century cathedral.

Left: Milo, Ercan and Vicky. Right: Memories of David.

There will also be events in London, the Lake District, Brecon Beacons, Peak District, South Devon Coast, and the Cotswolds from May to September. The routes are selected for their breath-taking scenery and are aimed at people looking for a challenge.

“The easy part is signing up to take part in Alzheimer’s Society’s Trek26, as it only takes a few minutes, but the hard part is to motivate myself to train for it! I just know, when I’m up there, trekking next to Stonehenge, taking in the beauty of it all and surrounded by hundreds of other very passionate people walking to stop dementia in its tracks, it will be so worth it.

 “I’m proud to be trekking for Alzheimer’s Society’s in honour of my grandad. My family has seen first-hand how much dementia can take from someone you love. It’s been hard to see how the condition affected my once strong and active grandad, as well as our whole family.

 “I hope everybody joins me to raise as much money as possible by trekking around the UK in support of people with dementia like my grandad.”

There are currently 900,000 people living with dementia in the UK with someone developing it every three minutes. This number is set to rise to over a million by 2025, and too many people are facing dementia alone without adequate support.

Money raised from Alzheimer’s Society’s Trek26 will go towards the charity’s vital services, including its Dementia Connect support line, which have been used over six million times since the start of the pandemic. Two years on, Alzheimer’s Society continues to be flooded with calls from people across the UK seeking vital support for their loved ones.

2022 Dates:

• 28 May 2022: London
• 25 June 2022: Lake District
• 16 July 2022: Cotswolds
• 13 August 2022: Peak District
• 2 September 2022: Stonehenge
• 10 September 2022: South Devon Coast
• 2 July 2022: Brecon Beacons

Sign up or find out more at alzheimers.org.uk/Trek26