Funeral Directors take on unique, five-island climbing challenge inspired by their coffins
A dedicated team from a respected Lanark Funeral Directors are swapping hearses for hiking boots for a unique climbing challenge in aid of lung cancer awareness.
The group from Ian Brown Funeral Directors, in Carstairs, will be scaling the highest peaks of the five Scottish islands of Arran, Mull, Jura, Harris and Tiree - which the coffins at the funeral home are named after.
They have cheekily coined their initiative Coffin Up for a Cause and are aiming to raise money for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation in a bid to get people talking about the disease more regularly.
In total, they will scale more than 3,500 metres – over two-and-a-half times the height of Ben Nevis during the challenge which runs from June, to mid-October.
The challenge was the brainchild of Funeral Service Operative Arry Renton, who is no stranger to a physical test, having spent 38 years in the Army including spells in the Royal Logistic Corps and The Royal Corps of Transport where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Arry, who is scouting out each of the climbs before the team arrive en masse, said: “It started with a tongue-in-cheek idea – climbing the islands our coffins are named after – but it’s turned into something genuinely moving and memorable.
“It’s certainly not going to be easy, some of these places are difficult to get to, which is why I am scouting them out beforehand.
“I think the hardest one will be Jura, from an access point of view, and even though it’s not the highest, it’ll be the most difficult walk and could be about 13 hours in total.
“But it will all be worth it to raise money and awareness. We know how prevalent the disease is, especially in Scotland.
“Some people in our team are more experienced than others when it comes to long walks and hikes, but we will start as a group and finish as a group, too.”
Paula Chadwick, Chief Executive of Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation, said: “I’m sure some people may be a little taken back by the name of this challenge – Coffin Up for a Cause. Personally, we’re big fans of anything that gets people talking more openly about lung cancer.
“Lung cancer is the most common form of cancer in Scotland and yet we don’t talk about it. This needs to change. We need to lose the stigma and nihilistic perceptions around lung cancer and be more open about this disease that affects so many of us.
“We want to say a huge thank you to the team for taking on this challenge to not only help those affected by lung cancer but also to help us start these vital and potentially life-saving conversations.”
Ian Brown Funeral Directors is part of the Funeral Partners family, the UK’s fastest growing funeral company.
To donate, visit https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/coffin-up-for-a-cause where updates from the challenge will be posted.
For help and support from Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation go to https://roycastle.org/