Forfar dementia meeting centre members are set for a spring Euro adventure – without leaving the town.
Lochside Connections hopes to raise £5,000 from its Walk the Windmills challenge.
And between them members plan to walk, run or cycle around 1,500 miles.
The idea came from the distance of a round trip between Scotland and the Netherlands, where meeting centres originated.
Angus pioneered development of the Dutch model through Kirrie Connections.
And when Lochside Connections opened in 2022 it quickly became a valuable facility for locals faced with memory loss and their families.
Funding support vital to Lochside Connections
Manager Laura Whitton said: “We rely on a variety of funding sources to keep its doors open.
“These include membership fees, grants and fundraising.
“They all combine to meet the costs of staff, programme and premises.”
She said they wanted to come up with a novel way of boosting the finances.
“This month, members, staff, family and friends aim to cover the distance from Forfar to the original meeting centre in Amsterdam,” Laura added.
And this week’s miserable weather didn’t dampen the enthusiasm for the fundraiser.
The group meets at the Lochside home of Strathmore Cricket Club so members regularly enjoy a walk around the pitch and Forfar Loch.
A fundraising page has been set up at gofundme.com/f/walk-the-windmills-with-lochside-connection
Laura hopes that as well as raising crucial funds it will heighten awareness of the meeting centre and what it offers.
A new national charity, Meeting Centres Scotland, recently launched in Dundee.
It aims to promote the work of the 19 centres which already exist across the country and expand the successful initiative.
