A TROWBRIDGE family who have been helped by Dorothy House are taking part in the Bath Moonlight Walk in memory of 28-year-old Alice Brailey who died from a brain tumour two years ago.

Mary Williams and her family and friends are taking part in the annual event as ‘Team Alice’ on Saturday, September 9 to raise funds for Dorothy House Hospice Care.

The walk will be a real family affair, as Mary is walking with her sister Helen Carter and her niece Lisa Carter, and her husband, Kim Williams, is acting as a support marshal for the event.

In addition, Mary’s friends Julie Hill, Sue Fletcher and one of Alice’s friends from Bristol, Katie Draper, are making up ‘Team Alice.’

Mary’s son, Stuart Brailey, has raised funds for Dorothy House by running the Bath Half Marathon in March this year and last year he completed the Bath Men’s Walk.

Stuart’s daughter, Sophie Brailey, 9, is too young to take part in the Bath Moonlight Walk, which is open to women and girls over 14 years, but she’d like to do the walk when she is older. Her contribution this year is to provide pictures in memory of Alice for Team Alice to wear pinned on to their T-shirts.

The hospice cared for Mary’s daughter Alice Brailey before she died on August 23 2015. During the last few months of Alice’s life she attended the Dorothy House day centre every Friday. She also received palliative and overnight nursing care and her family received a week’s respite care.

As a thank you for the care she received, Alice had organised 16 members of her close family and friends into ‘Team Alice’ to complete the 2015 Moonlight Walk and had raised £1,200. Sadly, Alice lost her brave fight before the event and the rest of her family and friends completed it in her memory.

Mary said: “Myself and ‘Team Alice’ went ahead with the walk as planned and in memory of Alice we released balloons and messages during the walk at the beautiful Georgian Circus in Bath. We plan to do the same again at this year’s walk and will release yellow balloons as yellow was Alice’s favourite colour.”

Since she died, the Williams family has raised nearly £10,000 for the hospice in just one year and have set up a Dorothy House Tulip Fund in her memory. In addition, Mary’s niece Lisa Carter ran the Bath Half Marathon in March 2016.

Saying why she is supporting the Bath Moonlight Walk, Mary said: “It is an amazing evening filled with music, great costumes, lovely people and buzzing atmosphere.

“I am looking forward to joining together with Alice’s friends and family to keep her memory alive and at the same time raise much-needed funds for a wonderfully caring charity.”

The Bath Moonlight Walk begins at the Southgate Shopping Centre in Bath at 10pm. It is Dorothy House’s biggest annual fundraiser and last year attracted almost 800 entrants who raised over £95,000 towards caring for people with life-limiting illnesses.

The women-only sponsored 8km Moonlight Walk, now in its 11th year, is an unmissable fundraising event for many local women. This year’s theme is ‘Saturday Night Diva’.

Emily Knights, events fundraiser at Dorothy House Hospice Care, said: “It’s great to know that ‘Team Alice’ are back again this year.

“To raise almost £10,000 in one year is an amazing achievement so many congratulations to Mary Williams, her family and all of Alice’s friends who helped reach that figure.”

To join in the fun and raise funds for Dorothy House, entries are open at www.bathmoonlightwalk.org.uk or call the fundraising team on 01225 721480.