A FUNDRAISER has got underway to enable a mother of three to "make some last memories with her family".

Kirsty Stevenson, 35, of Birstall was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) on November 22, last year.

MND is very rare and affects up to 5,000 adults in the UK at any one time.

It affects nerves in the brain and spinal cord, which send messages to the muscles.

As the messages stop reaching them, the muscles gradually weaken and waste away.

This affects how a person talks, eats, drinks and breathes and it is a life-limiting condition, with no cure currently.

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Miss Stevenson's friend, Danielle Meredith, 32, helped set up the funding page - on social media site, Facebook.

Damon Sandison, 32, who is Miss Meredith's partner, is taking on the Manchester Marathon on April 4 and they are hoping to raise £5,000 for Miss Stevenson and her family.

Miss Meredith said: "We get mistaken for sisters most of the time.

"We don't think we look like sisters, but others do.

"Even her dad says 'I saw you Kirsty earlier' and it's actually me.

"The last couple of years, we've seen each other every day and spoke every day - we've been very close."

The close friend explained how Miss Stevenson had been having problems for a few months last year.

She said: "She'd been back and forward to the doctors and had tests doing.

"The she had to go to the hospital and they told her she'd been diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

"It's heartbreaking, knowing what it does.

"We're both carers and she's spent a lot of years caring for somebody and knowing at some point now she's going to need care herself.

"She's done so much for them, to be hit by this nasty disease, it hits you hard.

"From my point of view, it's hard for her family too."

Miss Stevenson, who had to quit her job as a senior carer/activity coordinator at Priestly Care Home after nine years, has three children between the ages of 10 and 16.

The motivation behind the fundraiser was to allow Miss Stevenson to make as many memories as possible with her family.

At the time of writing, £2,516 had been raised in just 8 days.

More than 100 different people have donated and Miss Meredith says having the community behind the cause has taken Miss Stevenson's breath away.

The close friend described Miss Stevenson as one of the strongest people she knows and hopes the fundraiser can also bring about more awareness.

She added: "She gets up every morning and gets on with her day.

"She's so brave - I wouldn't be able to do it.

"It brings it to light a bit, obviously you've just had Rob Burrow, he has that support network behind him.

"But there's others in that same boat who don't have that support network and get it in the public eye."

If you want to donate visit: facebook.com/donate/1192809544258235/