A LOVING son is set to take on a major physical challenge in memory of his inspirational father who died from the cruel symptoms of motor neurone disease.

Lee Wickett, age 37, of Tavistock, is raising funds for the Motor Neurone Disease Association charity by climbing nine of the tallest mountains in the UK a year after his father Mark died.

The challenge of the climbs matches that of the emotional heartbreak that Lee and his wife Nicky have also endured recently; not only did they lose Mark, they have battled to save their baby son Charlie with two major heart operations in the last year.

Mark was a well-respected and loved coach of youngsters from Tavistock and the surrounding areas, who died aged 66 at Derriford Hospital with his wife Jan by his side, only 12 months after receiving a diagnosis. 

The Nine Peaks Challenge, devised by Lee, begins on Monday, July 31, when he climbs three peaks (Pen Y Fan, Cadair Idris and Snowdon) in Wales on day one, three in the Lake District (Helvellyn, Scafell and Scafell Pike) and three in Scotland (Ben Macdui, Braeriach and Ben Nevis). He will be joined by three friends, Steve Andrews, Nigel Locke and Steve Payne, all Royal Marines.

Mark, who also has a second son Steve, encouraged youngsters to explore their potential and to respect the rules, by instilling sportsmanship and teamwork through his patient and caring manner. There was an outpouring of tributes when he passed away, with parents saying ‘he was so welcoming and accepting of our son and his needs’. Such a wonderful coach and genuinely amazing man. He had such an influence on our boys’ love of sport and gave them an amazing start in life.’

Lee said: ‘Dad was a wonderful man and inspired so many youngsters to take up football, whatever their ability and background. MND is such a cruel disease and I want nothing more than for the charity to come up with a breakthrough that gives people longer to live with MND — he lived such a short time with it. Dad did his bit for the community and for the charity by having all sorts of tests and drugs. Now it's my turn to give back to him and the medical professionals.’

Charlie, aged 20 months, had his life saved last year at Derriford Hospital before having emergency heart surgery at Bristol Children’s Hospital, followed by a second operation at Bristol, to secure his future. Lee, who also has son Ollie, seven, then romped across Dartmoor for 24 hours in aid of two charities to thank Charlie’s medical teams at both hospitals. He said: ‘Last year was the worst and most traumatic of our lives with dad’s illness and Charlie’s heart problems. To some extent Charlie’s future is a happier one now and we’re optimistic. He’s doing very well now. While my brother Steve was the first to benefit from dad’s coaching, Ollie was one of the last youngsters. Ollie was very good with Dad when he was ill and I’m very proud of him. Now’s my time to honour dad’s memory on behalf of all our family and all the people who have said such nice things about him as a coach and a person.’  

To donate to Lee’s challenge via JustGiving, use the following web link: https://shorturl.at/txySV