A marathon-running Lanarkshire mum conquered Britain's highest mountain - in the dark - for a cause close to her heart.
Victoria Stephen took on the mighty Ben Nevis at midnight to raise vital funds for MND Scotland and her team have more than doubled their fundraising goal.
The 42-year-old supermum and two friends completed the gruelling 12-mile night-time trek in eight hours in memory of lost loved ones and those currently fighting motor neurone disease.
The brave challenge comes four years after the East Kilbride mum-of-two ran the London Marathon in tribute to her beloved dad Donald Stewart who was taken by the rare disease in May 2016.
Victoria, a photographer with our sister papers the Daily Record and Sunday Mail, was devastated when Donald, a freelance newspaper photographer, passed away just one year after being diagnosed, aged 62.
She smashed her £2000 fundraising target for MND Scotland and The Euan MacDonald Centre which assisted Donald before he died and is now well on her way to raising up to £3000 for the charity through her latest challenge with the hope of finding a cure for this cruel terminal illness.
Victoria told Lanarkshire Live she was inspired to dig out her walking boots after being left pained by the thought of people with suffering with MND alone through the COVID pandemic.
She told Lanarkshire Live: "I wasn't just doing it for my dad this time, but for all those who have motor neurone disease right now.
"It must have been absolutely horrific to be going though that during COVID.
"We almost didn't make it due to high winds and heavy rain but thankfully we got the go ahead and were thrilled to reach the top to thank everyone for all their kind donations.
"We are so grateful to everyone for giving so much money considering how tough times are at the moment."
Victoria's team of walkers trained for the big event by scaling Ben Lomond which happened to fall on a glorious sunny day - a far cry from what Ben Nevis had in store for them.
"It was absolutely scorching on our biggest training walk up Ben Lomond so we thought 'this will be no bother' and had all these romantic ideas of being up with the stars and witnessing a beautiful sunrise", added Victoria.
"Ben Nevis had a very different idea. Visibility was so bad but we didn't feel in danger at any point. Our guides kept us all close together, it was very well organised.
"And when the mist cleared and the sunlight came, the views were spectacular. The legs like jelly were worth it for the views - and the fundraising money.
"We pushed each other on and got through it together, we all felt very proud and it was nice to share stories of loved ones along the way."
MND is a rapidly progressing terminal neurological illness, which stops signals from the brain reaching the muscles causing muscle weakness and wasting.
Symptoms include losing the ability to walk, talk, eat, drink or breathe unaided.
There are around 400 people in Scotland currently living with MND, with on average almost 200 people diagnosed each year.
The average life expectancy is just 18 months from diagnosis, with 30 per cent of people with MND dying within a year.
Victoria said: "MND is the most horrific disease. It affects the whole family and is just torture to watch your loved one going through it.
“My dad was the heart and soul of our family and not a day goes by that we don’t think of him.
“He fought MND with every breath he took, but it’s a brutal and unforgiving disease. It's handing someone a death sentence.
"However through incredible research we know so much more about the disease, I'm positive we're close to finding a cure and there's nothing I wouldn't do to push that on."
Rachel Maitland, MND Scotland’s CEO, said: "I want to thank Victoria and the 39 other incredible supporters who braved our midnight Ben Nevis trek to raise vital funds for MND Scotland.
"So far, an unbelievable £39,283 has been raised to help support people affected by MND in Scotland and fund the pioneering research which is taking us closer to finding meaningful treatments.
"We are here to make time count for people living with MND today and bring hope of a cure for this devastating disease. We simply could not do this without fundraisers like Victoria."
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