Five-year-old Eilidh Lutton will walk eight miles this weekend, in memory of her little sister who died of a rare disease.
Eilidh is taking part in Kiltwalk on Sunday to raise money and awareness for a genetic condition which her sister Caoimhe died from aged just two months old.
Around 1,400 people are due to take part in the event, with the full 26-mile route stretching from Aberdeen to Potarch in Deeside.
Eilidh, of Torry, Aberdeen, will embark on the ‘wee walk’ with her friend Kayla Knowles, five, of Mastrick, starting her fundraising mission in Banchory.
Mum Patricia Ritchie said: “We live in Torry and Eilidh insists on the two of us walking every time we are going into town, it is a three-mile walk, but she manages it fine.
“There have been walks down to the beach as well, anywhere she is going Eilidh will want to walk to give her good practice.
“She might only be five, but she is so aware of what it is all about and also knows about how her wee sister died at only 65 days old.
“She often looks up at the sky, and tells me she is searching for Caoimhe’s Winkle Star, so that is going to be on the girls’ T-shirts when they do the Kiltwalk.
“Eilidh did not need persuading to do the walk when I explained what it was all about, and she understood it fully.
“She told staff at her nursery, Beach House, and got them all to sponsor her.
“Along with her friend Kayla it is her way of remembering all about Caoimhe and telling people what she was like.”
Patricia works for Scottish Fire and Rescue and has also received support from her colleagues at Altens and North Anderson Drive fire stations.
She set up Caoimhe’s Trust to support families devastated by Edwards Syndrome, a genetic disorder which affects just one in 6,000 children in the UK.
Nearly three-quarters of babies with the condition – which is caused by a duplicated chromosome – are miscarried or stillborn. Those who survive beyond one year will have a severe developmental disability.
Organised by the Press and Journal’s sister paper, The Sunday Post, Sunday’s main event starts at Duthie Park, when a piper will lead the assembled walkers out of the park, before they head along the River Dee valley, towards Potarch.
Visit www.caoimhestrust.org.uk for more details of the appeal and www.thekiltwalk.co.uk for more Kiltwalk information.