Sisters' appeal to leave father's seaside memorial in Aberdour alone

Ashleigh (left) and Lee at their father's memorial. Pic by FPA

Ashleigh McColl (18) along with her sisters Lee (24) and Julie (26) want any information on the theft at Aberdour’s Silver Sands, near to the lighthouse, where they scattered their dad Steven’s ashes in 2014.

Steven, who ran a restaurant in Cowdenbeath, died from lung disease aged just 48, leaving his three daughters devastated.

And they were heartbroken when the plaque, along with solar lights and a memorial stone book disappeared between Friday and Tuesday.

This is the second time the stone has been dug up, despite the family having permission from Fife Council and the Coast and Countryside Trust.

“It went missing in December 2015, but we didn’t discover it until last February because we hadn’t been down for a while due to the bad weather,” explained Ashleigh, a student at Fife College.

“We replaced it then, so we were really upset when we went down on Tuesday to discover that it’s gone again.

“It seems to be a malicious act and we want to find out who is doing this.

“Dad was ill for three years and he told us that when he died he wanted us to scatter his ashes on the beach that we all loved.

“We have permission, but somebody is obviously not happy. As well as digging out the plaque, which was cemented in, they have taken solar lights and a small book statue.

“I went down with my sister Lee, who is pregnant, and we were both very upset when we saw the empty hole.

“We searched the area to see if they had been thrown away, but they weren’t there. It is heartbreaking.

“We just want whoever is doing this to stop. It is so disrespectful.”

Anyone who has any information can contact Ashleigh on 07491 979724.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Police in Dalgety Bay received a report of a theft on Tuesday, pertaining to articles taken from a location in Aberdour. Inquiries into the full circumstances are at an early stage and ongoing.”

Following the second theft of the memorial for Steven, family friend Erinn Rennie has set up a fundraising page to try to raise £500 for a memorial bench to be installed at the beach. The site at: www.gofundme.com/x5yp5-memorial-bench says that the bench would be bought and fitted through Fife Council. Any extra money raised will be donated to the British Lung Foundation as Steven passed away from lung disease.