A successful race night in memory of a Kirkcaldy mum

Laura Bell held a race night and raised Â£2600 for Pancreatic Cancer Scotland in memory of her mum Isabel Fleming. Pic: Fife Photo Agency

Laura Bell (30) held the event in Dunnikier Golf Club on Saturday, July 14, inviting friends and family and locals.

She collected the money through proceeds from the race night as well as a successful raffle which was well supported by local businesses. The funding raised is going to Pancreatic Cancer Scotland.

Laura, who lives in Dunnikier Estate with her husband John, told The Press she chose this particular charity as it is a cause very close to her heart. She said: “My mum died in January 2008 from pancreatic cancer and she was just 49. She became ill at the end of 2007 and at first she was complaining of a sore stomach. She went for a scan which revealed she had cancer in her pancreas.

Laura's mum Isabel Fleming passed away in January 2008. Pic: Fife Photo Agency.

“She went for an operation to have her pancreas removed but they discovered the cancer had spread. My dad drove through to the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh where he was told and to this day, I don’t know how he managed to drive back.

“I remember him coming home and telling my sister and I.”

Laura, who was just 20 years old at the time, said when her mum, Isabel Fleming, became unwell, she wanted to start offering her support to charity as it gave her a focus.

She said: “I needed to do something to make myself feel better so John and I started giving monthly donations of £10 to Cancer Research. It was really strange because the first direct debit came out on January 5, the day my mum died.”

Laura signed up for the Race For Life in Beveridge Park, Kirkcaldy in June of that year and she has continued to take part in the event most years since. In 2014 she took part in a Big Walk for Pancreatic Cancer UK which involved Laura, family and friends walking from Dunnikier Estate to South Queensferry. Over the years, Laura has raised an incredible £10,000 for charity and she intends to keep on lending her support.

She added: “I am doing it in memory of my mum and to help raise awareness of the symptoms of Pancreatic Cancer so other people don’t have to go through what we have as a family.”