They will meet with Dr Gerry McPartlin, a retired GP from Applecross who has seized on a huge challenge to raise funds for L’Arche, an ecumenical, international charity for people with learning disabilities.
Dr McPartlin is undertaking a sponsored ascent of all 283 Munros involving climbing over 400,000 feet and walking more than 1,000 miles. He started at the beginning of April and is on schedule having already climbed over 100 Munros. He is on target to finish his quest at the beginning of July. He is delighted to have the Penicuik schoolchildren and 2SCOTS battalion to be with him and support him on his way.
The funds that Gerry raises will go towards a L’Arche fund set up in memory of a very close friend and much-loved priest, Monsignor David Gemmell who touched the hearts of so many. Fr David died suddenly on 6 March 2008 when in Barcelona to support Celtic Football Club. He had been for more than 10 years the Administrator at St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh and chaplain to Penicuik Primary School for a number of years.
The Fund will be used to support the building of a third L’Arche home in Edinburgh to be named in Fr David’s memory and to help establish the new L’Arche community, at Nyahururu, in Kenya.
