Trio back in Buckie after ride to crank up support for Ronald McDonald House
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A FUNDRAISING trio are back in Buckie after a gruelling cycle from Glasgow at the weekend to crank up support for a specialist hospital accommodation unit.
Buckie woman Naomi Murray's partner, brother and father-in-law took on the 212-mile challenge on Saturday and Sunday, May 15-16, to boost the coffers of Ronald McDonald House, in Glasgow.
The house provides free accommodation for families who have a seriously ill child undergoing treatment at the Royal Hospital for Children and other hospitals in the Glasgow area.
Naomi (26) and her partner, Sam Clark (28), have been raising cash for around a year now to show their gratitude to staff at the accommodation.
They were given warm and vital support when their son, Gray, underwent surgery aged just nine days old after he was born with a hole in his heart in October 2019.
They have now raised almost £15,000 for the staff there through various efforts.
Sam, along with his dad, George Clark, and Naomi's brother, Kris Murray, set off early on Saturday morning from Ronald McDonald House, stopping after 109 miles at Pitlochry.
They were back in the saddle on the Sunday for another 103 miles to Buckie, where they were greeted by supporters at Linzee Gordon Park mid-afternoon.
Local bus driver Wullie Coull acted as road support in his van, for any bike maintenance, refreshment stops and changes of clothing.
Naomi sat out the challenge as she is pregnant, but she has been busy, along with her sister-in-law, running fundraiser raffles through Facebook.
Naomi said: "The three boys managed fine, despite a bit of rain.
"We had a little drink on the Sunday night to celebrate.
"They are all a bit achy and tired today, and it might take them a few days to get back to normal.
"They're all saying they don't want to see a bike or a hill for a week or two.
"None of them are cyclists normally."
She added: "We have a raffle running just now, and another one planned, but after that we'll probably switch to running annual raffles each October, on the anniversary of when Gray had his operation."
The Buckie parents were made to feel at home during the nine days they spent at Ronald McDonald House so they could be near-hand for little Gray.
After Gray's birth on October 1, 2019, a check of the hole in his heart, or ventricular septal defect, revealed that he had a coarctation of the aorta, which meant the main tube in his heart was too tight and blood was not travelling round his body as efficiently as it should.
The youngster was then airlifted to Glasgow Queen Elizabeth University Hospital for the operation.
Naomi said Gray has since come on "leaps and bounds and continues to inspire us each day".
Ronald McDonald House costs around £660,000 a year to run.
To contribute to Naomi's fundraiser, visit her JustGiving page.
