A popular music teacher, whose two adult daughters both have ME, will be swimming in Lake Windermere later this month to raise money for the ME Association.
Stephanie Burns, from Leigh in Lancashire, will be taking part in the half-mile event of the Arla Great North Swim over the weekend of 14th-15th June.
She is undaunted by reports in the last couple of years that Windermere, England’s largest natural lake which is fed by four rivers and a number of smaller streams, has been heavily polluted at times by waste-water overflows.
“After swimming in Pennington Flash near my home, where all you can see is murky weed, Lake Windermere is a bit of an upgrade”, said Stephanie, who did a test swim there a few days ago – entering the water with her friend Louise near Grasmere, just past the White Moss Car Park.
“it's just green with no weed and nobody has died yet from doing it, so why not?
“My suffering for half an hour in mucky water, soon forgotten, whereas people suffering with ME or other related conditions are stuck with their pain for much longer.”
Mother-of-four Stephanie told us that her eldest daughter Heather (32) first became ill with ME when she was 17. “It just got worse and worse and for a long time we didn’t know what was wrong with her, until she was able to get a medical diagnosis”, she said.
Photos show Stephanie taking a practice dip in Lake Windermere a few days ago – with friend Louise Peacock
Heather is now married, with two children of her own and is another teacher, working two-and-a-half days a week. “Her OT said it was a miracle she was still able to work”, said her mum.
Stephanie’s other daughter, 23-year-old Megan, became ill with ME while on holiday with her family when she was 15. “Up until then, she also had been very fit and full of beans. But she started falling asleep unexpectedly and I thought ‘Oh my goodness, here we go again!’”
By this time, the family knew the ropes and, with the help of an understanding OT at the CFS/ME service at the Golborne Clinic in Leigh, Megan has recovered to the point where is able to work full-time – as yet another one of the family’s teaching dynasty.
Stephanie teaches woodwind at schools in the area – every instrument apart from oboe and bassoon, as the double reeds are a bit too much of a mouthful. The flute has always been her favourite.
For fun, she plays ‘cello in a local ensemble who call themselves ‘The Really Awful Orchestra'.
“I know too many people with this condition and more funds are needed to enable more research, leading to better treatments and understanding. Things are improving slowly but any donations, no matter the amount, will be gratefully received and hopefully this will help towards further improvement for those suffering,” she wrote on her fundraising page.
“The illness I not made up, it's real, it's debilitating – it needs more action so please dig deep and think of this vision of me, swimming across a mucky lake for a great cause!”
Photo shows Stephanie with her family on the day that Heather got married. From the left: her husband Chris, Stephanie, bride Heather, bridegroom Jonathan, Megan, Steph's eldest Son Daniel and her younger son David.
After watching my email inbox over the past couple of days, I can testify to Stephanie’s popularity. I see all the emails coming in from her fundraiser. The emails just haven't stopped pinging!
If you would like to ping me as well, please make a donation to Steph’s fundraiser using the following link:
Steph's Great North Swim
Fundraising for ME Association
Tony Britton
Senior Fundraising Volunteer, The ME Association
tony.britton@meassociation.org.uk Mob: 07393 805566
