![\"Niamh](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Niamh-will-be-running-in-memory-of-her-beloved-grandmother-pictured.jpg\")
Niamh will be running in memory of her beloved grandmother, pictured<\/p>\nA former Shropshire Live\u00a0presenter is taking on the iconic\u00a0London Marathon\u00a0to raise funds for\u00a0Alzheimer\u2019s Society,\u00a0a cause that is deeply personal to her and her family.<\/p>\n
Niamh will be running in memory of her beloved grandmother, pictured<\/p>\n
Niamh will be running in memory of her beloved grandmother, affectionately known by many as \u201cNanny Nuts,\u201d the ultimate matriarch whose larger-than-life personality and endless storytelling filled every room she entered.<\/p>\n
Her life, Niamh says, was \u201cfilled with the most extravagant memories.\u201d She was a woman with infinite stories to tell, stories that shaped generations of her family.<\/p>\n
But in October 2022, the family said their final goodbye, while that day marked the physical loss of their matriarch, Niamh explains that the heartbreak had started long before.<\/p>\n
\u201cLosing a family member is hard enough,\u201d she says. \u201cBut to lose someone so loved, for so long? To watch that person become unrecognizable? There really are no words.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dementia had gradually taken the vibrant storyteller they knew and loved. The woman who once filled the room with laughter and tales of the past slowly became unable to share them at all.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen she couldn\u2019t tell her stories anymore, our hearts broke. And that was just the start. They continued to break for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, Niamh is turning grief into action.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you know me, you know I don\u2019t run for anything,\u201d she laughs. \u201cBut I\u2019ll be running for Nanny Nuts.\u201d<\/p>\n
She is raising money for Alzheimer\u2019s Society, the UK\u2019s leading dementia charity, which provides vital support for families navigating the realities of dementia.<\/p>\n
Dementia is the UK\u2019s biggest health and social care crisis. One in three people will be diagnosed with dementia in their lifetime. Behind each diagnosis is not just one person, but an entire family learning how to cope with gradual loss.<\/p>\n
Alzheimer\u2019s Society offers a lifeline through specialist advisers, local support services, and over-the-phone guidance. Last year alone, their services were used more than six million times. Volunteers also made over 34,000 companion calls to help combat loneliness among people living with dementia.<\/p>\n
Donations also help fund groundbreaking research. In the past year, \u00a312.2 million was invested into cutting-edge projects aimed at improving treatment, care, and ultimately finding a cure.<\/p>\n
\u201cBy funding these promising projects, we can be part of history,\u201d Niamh says. \u201cWe can help find treatments \u2014 and one day, a cure.\u201d<\/p>\n
As she prepares to take on 26.2 miles through the streets of London, she carries with her not just the memory of her grandmother, but the voices and stories that dementia tried to silence.<\/p>\n
This time, she\u2019s making sure those stories are heard.<\/p>\n