A WOMAN whose 70th birthday celebrations were cancelled because of breast cancer treatment is throwing a belated party by abseiling off a church roof.

Anne Crawford from York will be joined by 14 family and friends for the daring descent from the top of St Chad’s Church, in Campleshon Road on September 18, to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Society, a cause close to her heart.

The former deputy head teacher said: “A close friend and former colleague has dementia and I’ve known other people with the condition too. I’ve always thought it’s a dreadful disease, so I want to do what I can to raise awareness, as well as money, to support those affected by it.

“Family carers in particular are badly affected. Wives and husbands become living widows and widowers as their loved ones slowly slip away. It really is awful.”

Anne, who lives close to the church, had hoped to celebrate her special day in January with friends, but unfortunately things didn’t turn out that way.

She said: “I ended up alone in my house because of lockdown and feeling pretty awful due to chemotherapy, so it wasn’t the best way to mark my 70th birthday.

“It’s been a challenging time for me. I lost all my hair during the chemotherapy and then had radiotherapy too. I’m still undergoing treatment, but they think I’m clear now.

“Some people might have expected me to raise funds for a cancer charity, but I don’t want cancer to define me. Also, the worst of my treatment is over and I feel I am beginning to get better. But you don’t get the chance to get better when you have dementia. There’s simply no cure.”

Anne has set up a Just Giving fundraising page with her abseiling friends, which includes some of her nieces and nephews, and already the total stands at almost £2,500.

She said: “I’d initially considered doing a parachute jump but medical reasons ruled that out, so I approached a company called Lost Earth Adventures and we obtained permission to abseil from the church roof.

“I know it’s going to be scary as I’ve never done anything quite like this before. I’ll probably let everyone else go before me. After the abseil, I’m having a long-overdue birthday party for around 40 friends, so it’s going to be quite a day.”

Leah Bull, Community Fundraiser for Alzheimer’s Society in North Yorkshire, said: “It’s wonderful that Anne and her family and friends are giving their time to support Alzheimer’s Society – we need more people like them to join us and unite against dementia.

“For the 850,000 people living with dementia in the UK, the impact of coronavirus has been catastrophic. Our support services, including our Dementia Connect support line, have been used over 5.5 million times since March 2020, and have proven to be a lifeline for thousands of families, but there are still too many facing dementia alone without adequate support.

“That’s why we’re so grateful to Anne and others like her. They are helping us to provide a lifeline of support for as many people affected by dementia as possible, who have been worst hit by the pandemic. They have never needed us more.”

Click here support Anne and her friends.