DEDICATED fundraisers are preparing to row through the night to raise thousands of pounds for charity.
Adrian Boot and Lawson Auden will work in shifts to complete a 24-hour row for Marie Curie.
The duo will be doing it all without getting their feet wet as they take on the challenge at Go Train East Rocks, near Foxlake Adventures.
Adrian, who lives in North Berwick, highlighted the personal and touching connection both men had with the charity.
He said: “My mum, Jennifer Boot, was a real outdoors person.
“She was incredibly outdoorsy and loved the wilderness; the wilder and more remote the better. When she was 70, she went to the mountains in Pakistan and she did these adventures.
“When she was 74, she had a sore stomach on July 24 and August 25 she was dead.
“She was dead in four weeks, which was incredibly difficult to deal with. I was just absolutely gobsmacked at Marie Curie and the support they offered.
“It just changed everything from being completely unbearable and out of control to something that had dignity and kindness.”
Forty-five-year-old Lawson, who lives in Dunbar, also shared his story and described cancer as “brutal”.
He said: “It made me realise that everything can change tomorrow – everything.
“In June 2009 my mum, Lesley Auden, went home with a headache and one year later she was gone. In that year were some beautiful times – the birth of my daughter, something that I believe kept mum going. Without this, Go Train East Rocks would not exist.
“It is the foundation of why I, with the help of my family, made the decision to stop wasting days in an office and do something.
“I believe that exercise is a privilege. It’s a pain that is chosen and there are so many that cannot do it, though they would love to.
“My dad was always proud of East Rocks – my mum never got to see it.
But towards the end of his life, Dad would tell me. He’d have liked to train there I think.”
The duo will start the challenge today (Friday) evening and take it in shifts through the night before finishing at the same time on Saturday.
Adrian, 57, told the Courier they would not sleep throughout the challenge.
Members of the training facility are also going to be on hand to offer support and encouragement when times get tough.
To make a donation, go to www.justgiving.com/page/lawson-auden-1715250322687
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