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Sutherland woman's staircase challenge nears £400,000


By Val Sweeney

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Margaret Payne at her home at Ardvar, near Drumbeg.
Margaret Payne at her home at Ardvar, near Drumbeg.

The inspirational 90-year-old Sutherland woman on a fundraising mission to scale the equivalent height of Suilven has raised almost £400,000 so far.

Margaret Payne is approaching the halfway mark in the two-month fundraising challenge to climb the staircase at her home 282 times – the equivalent height of the 2398ft mountain.

Initially, she hoped to raise £10,000 for the NHS and Highland Hospice. But the latest total now stands at £394,152 including Gift Aid.

Mrs Payne, of Ardvar, near Drumbeg, is delighted with the support from the public and is urging people to keep on giving.

"It is wonderful," she said. "I never dreamt it would make this sort of money.

"I am managing to keep going. I am gradually getting there.

Inspired by Colonel Tom Moore, who hit the headlines as he raised millions of pounds for the NHS by completing 100 laps of his garden ahead of his 100th birthday, Margaret began her challenge on Easter Sunday and completed three flights before lunch.

To donate go to Virginmoneygiving.com/MargaretPayneArdvar-SuilvenChallenge


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