By Colin Smeeton
The Nan McMurdo Memorial Fund has dispensed all of its funds, however the legacy that it has left behind and the help that it continues to provided, will continue well into the future.
Nan passed away in July 2020, after living a full and happy life despite the many challenges she had to face with long-term serious illness and disability. She was much loved in her local communities in Arran and in the Cumnock area where she worked tirelessly to support many local organisations and individuals over the years.
After her passing, the McMurdo family received a number of enquiries from friends and colleagues asking if she had a favourite charity to which they could contribute, and the family put a lot of thought into how people might honour her memory in a way that she herself would have wished.
Nan was awarded an MBE in 2015 in recognition of her “services to disadvantaged and vulnerable people”, and so her family decided to continue that support in her name. They set up the Nan McMurdo Memorial Fund and invited family, friends and local people from both Arran and the Cumnock area to contribute to the fund. The result was unexpected and astonishing, within only a few weeks, Nan’s fund had reached almost £4,000.
To enable the proceeds from the fund to reach those families and individuals which it was established to support, the family entered into a partnership agreement with Cumnock-based charity, YipWorld, whose strategy and aims were entirely in keeping with the guiding criteria set by Nan’s fund.
Arran Community and Voluntary Service (CVS) also agreed to use the fund to support disadvantaged people on Nan’s beloved island.
YipWorld’s chief executive, Janice Hendry said: “This has been a wonderful and impactful legacy in memory of Nan. In 2022, we used the funds to distribute warm packs to families in need as the cost of living crisis began to bite. This was then recognised by other fundraisers who wanted to give back to the community. East Ayrshire Council also provided a grant which meant a staggering match fund of £7,500 for Nan’s Memorial Fund in 2023.
“There are many families now able to have cosy nights with duvets and hot water bottles, and the legacy continues as we have secured further funding to distribute goods over the 2023/2024 winter period. Nan was truly a woman who cared sincerely about those in need, and she would have been extremely humbled. On behalf of everyone at YipWorld and the families we have supported, Thank You.”
On Arran, the fund has also helped to make a real difference, Sheridan Waldon, development officer of Arran CVS said: “The Nan McMurdo Memorial Fund has made a real difference to children’s lives. Especially during this cost-of-living crisis, many children are missing out on opportunities for personal development and the social connections that this brings. Nan’s fund has been invaluable in allowing young people to participate in summer sports camps, the sailing club, swimming lessons and gymnastics coaching, among other very worthwhile initiatives.’
Nan’s husband Ian expressed his delight at Nan’s fund being able to help those most in need. He said: “Despite being confined to a wheelchair for almost 40 years, Nan dedicated a huge part of her life towards helping people who faced a range of difficult challenges in very trying circumstances. When the fund was set up in the autumn of 2015, we decided that the monies raised should be used to support disadvantaged and vulnerable people in both Arran and the Cumnock area. Our family is delighted that the fund has managed to help so many families and individuals, and we are certain that Nan herself would have approved. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to all of those who contributed so generously.’
“Nan is still sorely missed by many, but her spirit lives on.”
Nan McMurdo as her family like to remember her. NO_B50NanFund01_23_Fun_helping_others
Ian McMurdo is pround of the work of the fund. 01_B32book02 (from library)