Super aunty Sophie conquers Ben Nevis for Nellie

A devoted aunty from Wythall spent her birthday weekend doing a Ben Nevis climb to raise funds for a charity very close to her heart. Sophie Bosworth, 31, was joined by 12 friends, family members and work colleagues on the August Bank Holiday Weekend hike, which has raised £8694 for Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, smashing her original £5k target.

The charity has been an important one to Sophie ever since her two-year- old niece, Nellie, was born with the rare condition, Alagille syndrome.

“Alagilles affects about one in every 30,000 babies,” explains Sophie. “The effects vary from one person to another, but it can affect the heart, kidneys, eyes and bones as well as the liver. My sister, Cara, was put in touch with Children’s Liver Disease Foundation, shortly after Nellie’s diagnosis and they have been there for her with information and support ever since.

“Nellie is doing brilliantly but she will continue to need the charity’s support as she grows up, her first operation is scheduled for October this year so that was also in the back of my mind the whole time. I wanted to take on a special fundraising challenge to celebrate my birthday and thought that, even though it’s 400 miles away, it was only right to do the biggest mountain in the UK for Nel.“

The fundraiser proved a challenge in every sense.

“The journey to Scotland took eight hours and when we got to Ben Nevis, the weather was appalling,” says Sophie. “Our amazing group leader, Sam Cairns of Fitness@58degrees, said that in over 100 Ben Nevis climbs, it was the worst conditions he had experienced. Even though we were all properly dressed and prepared, we found it brutal. No amount of waterproof clothing worked – we were all soaked to the skin!

“It was so worth it, however, for such a brilliant fundraising total that is still creeping up.  Special thanks must go to Mike and Gemma at Pentagon Vehicle Hire who supplied our transport.  Sam Cairns owner of Fitness@58degrees, The Crossing Hotel, and The Lunchbox Boys who lead the climb, accommodated and catered for us. Everything was seamless during our stay, and we cannot thank Sam and the team enough for everything they have done for us and Nellie. Everyone who took part, gave up their bank holiday weekend and paid to do this with us, it was a wonderful team effort and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved. I hope to continue doing an annual fundraiser every year with a new challenge, and I hope Nellie looks back and feels as proud of me as I am her. She is my everything.”

Michelle Wilkins, Head of Children’s and Families’ Services at Children’s Liver Disease Foundation commented: “We’re here for every family affected by childhood liver disease and it’s been great to see Nellie’s progress over the past two years. We rely on voluntary donations, however, so we’re delighted and so grateful to see what this challenge has raised. It’s a tremendous result and Sophie is clearly a fantastic fundraiser as well as a wonderful aunty.”