THE charity set up by Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie in memory of his mother is to spearhead a fundraising drive to build a Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre for families affected by cancer across the north-east of Scotland.

Montgomerie established the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation (EMF) in memory of his mother,who died of lung cancer in 1991.

And it was revealed yesterday that the foundation has appointed a local board to raise the £3 million needed to open the new Maggie’s Centre in the grounds of NHS Grampian’s Foresterhill hospitals complex in Aberdeen.

The Scottish golfer, who has already raised the funds needed to build a Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre at Monklands Hospital in Lanarkshire, said the new centre in Aberdeen would create a lasting and valuable legacy in his mother’s name.

“As soon as I walked into a Maggie’s Centre I knew that their support would have made a major difference to my family when we were coping with my mother’s illness,” Montgomerie said.

“I am determined to work with Maggie’s to ensure that people living with cancer no longer have to suffer alone.”

The appeal committee is being chaired by Colin Welsh, the Aberdeen-based chief executive of the international corporate finance division of energy investment bank Simmons and Company.

Mr Welsh, who has had first hand experience of being diagnosed with cancer, said: “The service that Maggie’s provides to cancer sufferers and their families is both invaluable and unique. Aberdeen is the only city in Scotland not to have a Maggie’s Centre, and we aim to put that right.”

He added: “Maggie’s Aberdeen will be based on the grounds of Foresterhill Hospital and will offer support to the thousands of people affected by cancer in the region, as well as their family and friends.”

Laura Lee, the chief executive of Maggie’s, praised the support of Montgomerie’s foundation. She said: “It is truly wonderful that, through the support of EMF,we will now have a Maggie’s centre in every major city in Scotland, leading theway for the rest of the UK and beyond.”

Richard Carey, the chief executive of NHS Grampian explained: “This new centre will complement the comprehensive treatment and support services currently in the region.

Maggie’s centres work alongside the NHS and offer professional, evidence-based, emotional, practical and psychological support to everyone facing cancer. This centre will make a great difference to people across the North-east.”

The Monklands Maggie’s Centre was the first project to be funded by the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation.

A spokeswoman for Maggie’s said: “The inaugural Maggie’s Centre opened in Edinburgh in 1996. There are now six permanent centres, including Glasgow, Dundee, Fife, Highlands and London – with plans to build a further seven centres in the next two years: Oxford, Cotswolds, Swansea, Newcastle, Nottingham, Lanarkshire and Aberdeen.”

She added: “Maggie’s Centres offer free-of-charge emotional support and practical advice to anyone affected by any kind of cancer.

“The programme of support includes benefits advice, support group and one-to-one sessions with psychologists, nutrition advice, a library of information and cancer support specialists on hand to answer questions, relaxation techniques, courses of living with cancer, classes for carers and much more.”

by FRANK URQUHART, The Scotsman

We would like to thank everybody who supported the EMF in the 2010 Great Edinburgh Run. Over 10,000 runners of all ages took part in the run and The Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation was one of the featured charities and over 60 people ran 10k, the Junior or Mini run in aid of the Foundation including Scott Hastings. Many people ran in Monty wigs! We hope to have raised almost £5,000 from the sponsorship. The Foundation was featured extensively in the Channel 5 live coverage and in a one hour special on BBC Scotland. Click here to see event details >>

Scottish golf legend Colin Montgomerie today (Friday 12 March) called on his supporters to take part in this year’s Bupa Great Edinburgh Run in aid of his cancer charity, the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation.

Colin, who will captain the European team at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor in October, was joined by members of staff from Edinburgh Leisure – who manage the Braids Hill Golf Course – as they surveyed the route of the 10k event.

Euan McIntyre, Kenny Craigie and Allison Brodie are among the first of Monty’s fans to sign up for the run – held on Sunday 2 May – in a bid to raise money for the Foundation.

Established in 2007 in memory of Colin’s late mother who died of cancer, The Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation aims to raise funds to provide practical and emotional support to people and their families affected by the disease.

The hotel group Malmaison and Hotel du Vin have already raised £100,000 for the Foundation through walking the gruelling West Highland Way and Colin wants to encourage as many people as possible to take part in the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run for his Foundation.

He said: “I’ve been genuinely touched by the support we have had in our bid to raise over £2 million to build the Elizabeth Montgomerie Building in Lanarkshire, an area with some of the highest cancer rates in Europe.

“We still have a long way to go, so we would appreciate the support of all the runners who could take part in the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run in aid of the Foundation. It’s a magnificent course in one of the great cities of the world and hopefully next year, when I’m less busy on the golf course, I will be able to attend myself.

David Hart, communications director at Bupa Great Edinburgh Run organiser Nova International, said: “I’d like to wish Colin and his supporters every success with their fundraising efforts. I’m told the Foundation runners will be wearing blonde wigs in homage to Colin, so they’re bound to inject some colour and fun into race day.

“Every year, our runners raise more than £28m for good causes. I know that everyone taking part in this year’s Edinburgh Run will do so with Colin’s best wishes and we’d like to thank him for that.”

The Foundation is currently working with Edinburgh-based Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres on the construction of the new Elizabeth Montgomerie Building at Monklands Hospital, Lanarkshire.

Paul Bush OBE, chief operating officer at EventScotland, the national events agency, said: “Every year millions of runners take part in mass participation events across Scotland and raise thousands of pounds for charity. This is just one of the ways in which mass participation events like the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run give back to the communities which host them. The Bupa Great Edinburgh Run is one of the highlights in Scotland’s events calendar and inspires runners from all over the UK to train and take part in a race which showcases Edinburgh’s iconic landscape and enthusiastic crowds.”

Councillor Steve Cardownie, festivals and events champion for the City of Edinburgh, added: “The Great Edinburgh Run is a fantastic event. There will be thousands of runners taking part in aid of a wide range of worthwhile causes, or simply just for the challenge of it. I’m sure there are few other races anywhere in the world which can boast as stunning a location; with Edinburgh’s spectacular backdrop, runners and spectators are in for a thrilling day out!”

For further information on the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation – including details of how to donate to the charity – visit www.elizabethmontgomeriefoundation.org

To register for the Bupa Great Edinburgh Run, visit www.greatrun.org

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• The Bupa Great Edinburgh Run will be held on Sunday 2 May, starting and finishing in Holyrood Park. Entrants must be 15 years and over.

• The event will be broadcast live on Channel 5.

• Mini and Junior Edinburgh Runs will also take place on Sunday 2 May and are open to children aged 3-8 and young people between the ages of 9 and 14 respectively.

Issued by:
Ross Nisbet / Alison Downs
3×1 Public Relations
0141 221 0707
rnisbet@3×1.com / adowns@3×1.com

For more information on the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation, contact Lucinda Rivers on 07789 434664

Nova International
The Bupa Great Edinburgh Run 2010 is brought to you by event organisers Nova International and is sponsored by Bupa.
Nova International, headed by Olympic Medallist Brendan Foster is one of the UK’s leading event management and sports marketing agencies. The company’s current brand portfolio also includes some of the biggest running events in the world all based on the Great North Run, the world’s biggest event with over 54,000 entries.
Nova International was established in 1988 and has a strong sporting pedigree. Based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Nova have established themselves as a market leader in the world of sports marketing and event management. For more information please visit www.greatrun.org.

Bupa
Bupa is the UK market leader in health and care with a strong international presence. Established in 1947, it has over 10 million customers in almost 200 countries and over 49,000 employees. Its main interests are health insurance, care homes for older people and young disabled, health assessments, workplace health and childcare services. Bupa is a company limited by guarantee and does not have a share capital. As a result, it can focus on its customers, helping them to live longer, healthier lives and can reinvest all of its profits to do this – this is the dividend that Bupa provides. Furthermore, through Community Connections Bupa encourages its employees to play an active role within its local communities. The Bupa Foundation is an independent charity which funds medical research. Bupa Giving was established to mark the group’s 60th anniversary in 2007 and supports the development of healthcare services and those who provide them.

City of Edinburgh Council
This event is part of the City of Edinburgh Council’s Activity programme, which promotes sport and physical activity events throughout the city. The Bupa Great Edinburgh Run is a great example of an event which helps the people of Edinburgh to get active!
www.eventsedinburgh.org.uk. Edinburgh’s sporting calendar for 2010 is shaping up to be truly exhilarating, with four major world events taking place in September alone (the World Universities Hockey Championships, the World Duathlon Championships, the World Youth Climbing Championships and the Archery World Cup Finals).

EventScotland
EventScotland, the national events agency, was established in 2002 with the aim of strengthening and promoting Scotland’s events industry. EventScotland does this by attracting, generating and sustaining a portfolio of world class events in Scotland.
In 2009, EventScotland launched the new national events strategy which will lead Scotland’s events industry into and beyond 2020.
The national events strategy, Scotland: The Perfect Stage, outlines a clear mission and vision to further establish Scotland as a world leading event destination, to grow the industry and the expertise within it and to deliver events which provide impact and international profile for Scotland.
EventScotland offers funding through two programmes: the National Programme which funds events which drive domestic tourism and the International Programme which funds events which raise the profile of Scotland on an international stage and generate economic impact.

2009 has been a momentous year for the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation. As we approach the first year anniversary of the Foundation in February, we would like to reflect on the past year.

When we started the Foundation, we had no idea what the response was going to be. We have met so many amazing people who have encouraged us, donated to us, told us their stories and all of these people have made us more committed to reaching our goal of raising £3m to support people affected by cancer.

Maggie’s – We have now worked with Maggie’s for almost a year and we have spent a lot of time in the Centres in Dundee, Edinburgh and at the interim service in Lanarkshire where we will build the Elizabeth Montgomerie Building. The dedication of the staff at Maggie’s and the positive work they do with people affected by cancer is humbling and we are so pleased to be working with them. One person who we met at Maggie’s in Dundee told us his story and although he has sadly died now, ‘C’ was one of the reasons that we decided to support Maggie’s. He explained how the staff had supported him and his family through the terminal diagnosis that he had received, how they had helped him, his wife and young children come to terms with his diagnosis. They also helped him get his finances in order so that his family would be financially stable. The Elizabeth Montgomerie Building will be a legacy to people like ‘C’ who showed us how Maggie’s can helps and supports people through this dreadful disease.

Hotel du Vin/Malmaison – The hotel group in Scotland have been our biggest supporters to date. Their enthusiasm, commitment and encouragement have been very important to us moving forward. Again we are so grateful for everything they have done; from raising money through the discretionary £1 on every bill through to the magnificent effort of 30 staff completing the West Highland Way for us in November. Hotel du Vin/Malmaison have raised over £100,000 for us this year, which is an amazing effort. Thank you to Robert, Pauric and all the staff that have made this partnership such a success. The Daily Record/Sunday Mail have also helped us so much to raise the profile of the charity and this Christmas they have launched a Christmas Appeal to generate further income for the Foundation. Annie Brown has written a number of great articles throughout the year, many of which are on this site. Annie has spent a lot of time with us at Maggie’s , walking the West Highland Way etc and we are grateful to her and the editor Bruce Waddell for their support.

In August, Diageo and Gleneagles chose the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation as the beneficiary of the Johnnie Walker Championships. This was a very successful partnership and over 30 volunteers on the course during the event collecting money and we hosted a reception on the Saturday night. We raised almost £50,000 during the event and the support of all the volunteers, Graeme Marchbank, Patrick Elsmie and their team was invaluable.

There have been so many other people that we have met who have helped us this year and we are grateful to all of them. Nicola Mathieson ran the Glasgow 10k for the Foundation, Opening More doors gave us a very generous donation and a number of golf clubs including Swanston and Dunning Ladies Section have contributed to the Foundation. Mike Holland and Oil Aid have been a continual support and we look forward to working with them again next year.

We have some very exciting plans next year. In February, we will celebrate our first year anniversary with an announcement about the Foundation and in March we will be hosting an event in Monaco. Next year will be a busy one for Colin and the Foundation but we are very excited about our plans and are confident that we will be well on our way to meeting our target. We recently filmed a DVD and Colin said that ‘If he could help one person affected by cancer to receive the support that he did not receive, then this would be his greatest achievement ever.’ We hope to be able to support as many people as possible next year and in the future.

Thank you all for you continued support, Lucinda Rivers – Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation.