Charity volunteer gets ready for 100ft abseil in memory of beloved mum 02 March 2023 Beverley Curran, 61, is a volunteer in Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland’s Linlithgow shop. In March, Beverley will take part in an abseil off the Falkirk Wheel to raise funds for the charity. Every so often do something that scares you because it proves you’re alive. That’s the motto Beverley Curran has adopted since moving to Scotland in 2021. And it’s the reason that on March 12, she will be abseiling down the mighty Falkirk Wheel to raise vital funds for Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland. My mum had a stroke when she was only 58 that affected her very badly and from which she never fully recovered. She died 10 years ago this year so I wanted to mark that anniversary by doing something in her memory. The 60-year-old said: “I saw the advert for the event and thought ‘why not?’. And before I’d really thought about it, I’d booked myself in. Then I thought ‘oh my goodness, what have I done?’. “I’ve done a little bit of abseiling before when I was a teacher. But the Falkirk Wheel is a lot higher than a 15-foot climbing wall! “I like the idea of doing something that’s very far out of my comfort zone. I always think you should do something that scares you every so often.” Beverley, a retired home economics teacher, and her husband Simon moved to Linlithgow, West Lothian, in 2021 from Hertfordshire. Part of the pull was Simon’s roots – his dad was born in Dundee. But with a son living in Hull and a daughter in Newcastle, a home north of the border was also a practical choice. Determined to immerse herself in a new community right away, Beverley signed up to become a volunteer in Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland’s shop in the centre of Linlithgow. Celebrating one year in the role recently, Beverley was inspired to take her involvement with the organisation even further with that impulsive sign-up for the Falkirk Wheel abseil. She said: “I’d already browsed in the CHSS shop before I saw the sign looking for volunteers. This charity seemed very apt. My mum had a stroke when she was only 58 that affected her very badly and from which she never fully recovered. “She died 10 years ago this year so I wanted to mark that anniversary by doing something in her memory. “I haven’t set a target for what I’d like to raise, but I’m hoping to make a big contribution to the work that CHSS does in Scotland for people like my mum.” You can boost Beverley’s fundraising total by visiting her JustGiving page.