Malcolm and Joshua’s story

Malcolm and Joshua's story

A sports-mad four year old from Dumfries has raised hundreds of pounds for Alzheimer Scotland in memory of his great uncle and local football legend Brian Wearing.

Joshua Wearing has raised £320 for the charity by running the Kids’ Kilometre race as part of the 2025 Edinburgh Marathon Festival. He is due to start at Laurieknowe Primary School later this year and took on the challenge in memory of his great uncle Brian who played for Annan Athletic FC and Glenafton Athletic Juniors, and was top goal scorer for Gretna FC in the 1960s.

Brian, who was born in Annan, also had the chance to play professionally for Ipswich Town and Blackpool FC, but turned the offers down to help raise his young family. He was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2019 and passed away the following year aged 77. He has been honoured with a commemorative plaque on the wall at Annan Athletic FC.

Following in his sporty great uncle’s footsteps, Joshua took on the fundraising challenge with support from his dad Malcolm Wearing, who works as a service administrator co-ordinator at Alzheimer Scotland’s dementia resource centre in Gordon Street, Dumfries.

Malcolm, 51, said: “My uncle Brian was a great guy who loved his family and loved sports. He was the life and soul of any party he was at and could make friends with anybody.

“He was born in Annan and played to a high level as a centre-half with clubs from around the area, including Annan, Glenafton and Gretna FC. He could’ve played professionally but he turned those offers down and ended up working in the insurance industry because he wanted to support his wife and two young daughters.

“He moved down to Blackburn a number of years ago and I have fond memories of visiting him there and playing football and golf with him. He’d often visit home and used to run football teams for kids around the Dumfries area.

“The family were all devastated when we lost him to dementia in 2020.”
Malcolm said his son first got into running last year through the Dumfries Junior Parkrun and quickly showed a talent for it. This gave them the idea to put the young runner’s skills to good use by raising money for a cause close to the family’s hearts.

Malcolm said: “My wife Carly regularly takes part in the adult Parkrun and started bringing Joshua to the junior runs. He’s always on the go and this was an ideal way for him to burn off some energy while spending time outdoors with his mum.

“He showed a real talent for it, which is when we got the idea for him to run the children’s race at Edinburgh Marathon Festival. We thought it’d be great to raise money for Alzheimer Scotland in memory of uncle Brian as it’s a charity that really means a lot to us.

“Joshua was so excited about the race and smiled from start to finish, giving the stewards high-fives along the way. He also loves the colour purple and was delighted with his Alzheimer Scotland t-shirt, medal and teddy bear.

“We’ve been blown away by the support we’ve received and we’re delighted to have raised so much money to support the amazing work of Alzheimer Scotland.”

Lynn Janssen, who manages Alzheimer Scotland’s day centre and community groups across Dumfries and Galloway, said: “We’re so grateful to Joshua and his family for raising these funds for us. What an amazing effort from such a young boy.

“The money raised will help support vital dementia care, research and improvements in brain health. Every penny raised for Alzheimer Scotland stays in Scotland and helps make sure no one faces dementia alone.”

Massive thank you to both Malcolm and Joshua for sharing their story.