A MUSSELBURGH mum-of-two is running the Edinburgh Half Marathon in memory of her eldest brother who died of pancreatic cancer.

Louise Wallace, 30, of Whitehill Farm Road, told her brother Graeme Nish, also of Musselburgh, that she would undertake the challenge for him before he passed away last year at the age of 39.

Graeme was a self-employed carpenter who worked at Musselburgh Racecourse.

She will be joined at next month’s half marathon by her husband Niall, friends Nicola Hunter, Jenn Currie, Scott and Rachel Walls, and Kim Nicoll, who are all from Musselburgh.

They decided to support Louise, who is raising funds for Pancreatic Cancer UK at the event, by taking part in the run from Potterrow in Edinburgh, finishing at the Pinkie Playing Fields in Musselburgh, where they will be cheered on by family and friends.

Louise said: “I’m so thankful they are doing it to support me. Most of us have never done running challenges like this before or don’t normally run, so this is quite the challenge for us all.

“Some days I am looking forward to it because I do think, if I finish, it will be a great achievement, whereas other days I think, ‘what are you doing?’”

She added: “I told Graeme that I was going to run the half marathon for him and that’s the only thing that has kept me from pulling out.

“He was in the hospital at the time, so I’m not sure how much of it he took in. I am hoping to do him proud.

“This is something Graeme would probably tease me about and would probably say, ‘you’ll not manage that sis’ with his cheeky smile.

“I am not a runner and definitely not a long distance runner. I have been training since September and have found it quite difficult, especially finding the time to increase the mileage for long-distance running whilst working and having two children.”

She added: “I did my first official run a few weeks ago which was a 10k at Archerfield.

“My hope for the half marathon on May 26 is to get over the line without being picked up by the sweeper bus. Nicola has vouched to stay with me the whole way round to make sure I finish.

“We are trying to train three times a week and then do a long run at the weekend. The aim is to try and have completed 10 miles in training before the day. People tell me if you can do 10 miles then you can do the last three on adrenaline on the day.”

Louise has two other brothers, Colin and Murray, and their mum and dad Elaine and Adam Nish, of Bridge Street, have lived in Musselburgh all their lives.

The family attended Campie Primary School and Musselburgh Grammar School.

Graeme worked at Musselburgh Racecourse alongside his dad, who is the facilities manager/caretaker.

A Fisherrow resident, Graeme was latterly staying at Mansfield in Musselburgh with his partner Laura.

Louise said that Graeme was a loving uncle to her sons Alex and Jack, and Colin’s two children Jaden and Sofia.

A Hibs supporter, he regularly took Jaden to watch the team play at Easter Road Stadium.

Louise said: “He was an amazing big brother, son, partner, uncle and friend to many.

“It has only been 10 months since he died and we still find it hard to talk about. I can guarantee there will be a lot of tears when we cross the finish line. Pancreatic cancer is known as the silent killer as it does not show symptoms in the early stages.

“We are running to raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer UK to help them with their research.

“We started off with a target of £800 which we reached pretty quickly and upped it to £1,500.

“However, I received a cheque from a very good friend of the family for £1,000 last week so our target now is to reach £2,500.”

To support the runners, go to uk.virginmoneygiving.com/LouiseWallace5