13 September 2024 News
A former artist and musician who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND) in 2019 has pledged to leave the MND Association a gift in her Will to allow the charity to ‘change the world’.
Ellen Wang, from Oxfordshire, was diagnosed with the disease after noticing subtle changes to the dexterity in her hands. As the disease progressed, Ellen found she could no longer draw or write and a subsequent GP referral to the MND clinic in Oxford confirmed she had developed MND.
Devastated by her diagnosis, Ellen initially suffered with intense depression but with support from her partner of 30 years, Graham, her MND team and local support groups, she has been able to find acceptance. Since then, she has been empowered to focus on what she can do, which has included leaving a gift in her Will to support the MND Association’s work in the future.
To mark Gifts in Wills Week, which is being held between September 9-15, Ellen has bravely shared her story to encourage others to consider doing the same.
Ellen explained: “I attended a legacy event in Oxford. There were lots of people who had given legacy gifts and I was the only person with MND there. All the other people had given gifts in their Wills. That was a moving experience because all these people were giving big gifts and it made me realise how much MND research depends on gifts in Wills. It actually made me change my Will to benefit the MND Association – I went straight ahead and did that after the event.
“I felt there was such meaning in that. I had inherited money from my stepfather and I waited for something important to happen. But then I thought, ‘This is it. The MND Association and MND research deserve this money so they can change the world,’ and it immediately felt much more meaningful.”
Gifts left to the Association in Wills account for around 30% of the MND Association’s income allowing the charity to support people living with MND while funding research into potential new treatments. More than 1,000 people have already pledged to support the Association in this way.
The MND Association’s Legacy Marketing Manager, Emma Fellows, said that Gifts in Wills Week was a great opportunity to learn more about how to leave a gift in your Will and the lasting impact it could have.
She said: “We are incredibly grateful to people like Ellen who make the important decision to support us with a gift in their Will. It’s a powerful way to support the Association and the fight against MND.
“Every penny raised in this way will go to supporting people living with MND, while funding the search for a cure which gives us all such tremendous hope for the future.”
To learn more visit www.mndassociation.org/legacies