Thursday, 14 May 2026
Fundraising, MND stories
Last year, Andy Vaughton who is living with motor neuron disease (MND), crossed the finish line at the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon surrounded by a sea of supporters – a group that has quickly become known as ‘Andy’s Army’. Together, they’ve raised tens of thousands of pounds for My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.
This year, that army is bigger, bolder, and heading for the Jurassic Coast.
On 16-17 May, Andy is taking on the Jurassic Coast Ultra Challenge - a 100km walk along the Dorset coastline - and in an extraordinary show of support, friendship and determination, 106 people have signed up to take part alongside him.
An active and passionate sportsman, husband to Susie and Dad to three boys, Andy was an anaesthetist in the NHS before having to retire in 2022, only a year after his MND diagnosis.
The first signs of symptoms came long before diagnosis but were easy to dismiss.
“I had an inkling things weren’t right a couple of years before,” Andy admitted, “but I ignored them. They would pop up onto my radar every now and again, but I would think I was being paranoid and was very ‘head in the sand’ about health stuff. I think with being a medic you kind of do that a little bit anyway.”
When a weakness in his hands turned into something he couldn’t overlook any longer, Andy went through a full investigation in 2020. All signs pointed towards nerve damage, so he underwent surgery for that in what was one of the last elective operations in hospital as COVID-19 hit the UK.
But a year later things weren’t any better, and atrophy in Andy’s right hand became noticeable.
Eventually, after going on a diagnostic journey with several different neurologists, Andy’s worst fears were confirmed in May 2021 when he was officially told he had MND.
“My prognosis was very uncertain at that stage,” Andy said, “you’re told it’s terminal and you’re going to lose use of your arms quite soon, and you just have to carry on. Life goes on, and goes on in a very different direction. It was hard. That time was really difficult.”
Not long after Andy’s diagnosis, our founder - Doddie Weir - reached out to him personally.
“I had a great phone call with him,” Andy recalled. “He talked about the importance of being positive and how he coped. He was, and still is, an incredibly inspiring person in my journey.”
Andy and Doddie had crossed paths before, years before either was diagnosed. Andy was 21, on a windsurfing course in Barbados, and happened to end up in the same nightclub as Doddie one evening.
Reminiscing on the moment, Andy said: “I was a massive rugby fan back then, so we were these annoying 21-year-olds and started downing drinks with him. He was so friendly, and very happy to drink with us!
“When I got diagnosed, I was relaying that story to some mates of mine,” he added, “so one of them emailed the Foundation and then a couple of weeks later Doddie phoned me.”
Just like Doddie, from early on after receiving his diagnosis, Andy was determined to get stuck into fundraising and turn something devastating into a force for good.
“It’s such a rubbish diagnosis and I wanted to try and do something positive with it,” Andy stated. “I wanted to try and effect change as much as I possibly could, and for me the best way I could see to do that was through fundraising and doing challenges. I wanted to do my bit.”
That resolve has fuelled challenge after challenge ever since, and has inspired what is now ‘Andy’s Army’.
“As soon as I was diagnosed, I’ve been really lucky with having a huge amount of support from friends and family,” Andy acknowledged. “People want to help and do as much as they can.”
A year after his diagnosis, Andy was still able to play rugby, so he and a group of friends organised and were awarded the Guinness World Record for the longest game of beach touch rugby. The game was followed by a gala dinner which raised significant funds for charity.
Then came a trek through the Jordanian desert, climbing a mountain in Morocco, and then last year, the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon.
At first, Andy thought he’d left it too late to take part: “I loved running and I’d started to struggle because my arms weren’t working properly. I found it increasingly difficult to run, so I kind of stopped.”
Yet despite losing the strength in his arms, Andy still considers himself fortunate.
“I’ve been lucky my legs have stayed really strong,” he remarked. “So I was like ‘this is stupid, my legs do work, I’ve potentially got a marathon in my legs.’”
Adapting to running with a sling to support his arms, Andy started training for the Leeds Marathon. As soon as he signed up, others followed in a swell of support to run it with him - ‘Andy’s Army’.
Together, Andy’s Army took on the marathon and raised £75,000 for My Name’5 Doddie Foundation in doing so.
Now for his next challenge, Andy has set his sights even higher - the 100km Jurassic Coast Ultra.
“Because the marathon was quite hard on my arms and shoulders, I thought a walking challenge might be a little bit easier,” he explained, “and it’s a challenge I’d always wanted to try and do in my life, to try and walk 100km.”
Although as training began, the reality of the challenge started to sink in.
“It sounds stupid, but I don’t think I quite appreciated how far 100km is,” Andy confessed, “but it’s only when you start walking the longer distances you begin to realise what a ridiculous distance it is.
“When I signed up for it, I did do a bit of research and saw some people say this is by far harder than a marathon, but I couldn’t see how it would be. Though the longer training has gone on, the longer walks have gone on - it is physically very hard. This is going to be at least 24 hours on your feet, continuously walking.”
Living with MND brings additional difficulties too.
“My legs fortunately have remained really good, but my arms are a lot weaker, so for me the physical strain is on my shoulder joints,” Andy explained. “Just the weight of my arms, I can’t really carry them any longer, so that then gives me neck pain.
“My neurologist thinks I’m mad, he’s worried about me tripping and falling, and I do get bad cramps which is something I learned about with the marathon. I’m not sure how I’m going to be deep into the walk.”
Mentally, Andy also knows there will be moments where continuing feels almost impossible.
“There will definitely be points where I’m going to have to dig very, very deep to keep going. I’m pretty stubborn, so hopefully that helps,” he added.
Alongside his determination, Andy’s perspective will also help him through.
“I know how fortunate I am to be able to do what I still can. I know a lot of people who are no longer here, who have lived with MND, and you know how much they would have wanted to still be able to do the things I can still do. I use that a lot to draw on when things get tough - how lucky I am to be able to do it. That’s a very strong motivator for me.”
What's more, at the heart of everything Andy is doing, is the community he has surrounding him.
“I’ve got this incredible group of people around me that I draw a lot of strength from, a lot of joy from. It really helps me through when it does get tough, and I’ll definitely be drawing on them a lot for the 100km.”
What this swell of support means is difficult for Andy to put into words, but is profoundly felt: “It’s such powerful emotions you get from the support that I have from this amazing community. It means more than you can possibly ever say or describe to people,” he said. “I will get very emotional when I think or try and talk about it, because you just feel the love and the undying support people have for you.”
As Andy prepares to take on the Jurassic Coast Ultra this weekend, despite the card he has been dealt, he wants people to be inspired by the power of hope: “Because that’s what Doddie did for me. He gave me hope that there is a way to live with MND, and there’s a way to live well with MND.”
He explained: “When you’re first diagnosed you feel very hopeless and helpless, but seeing how someone like Doddie lived with it and the incredible things he achieved in his lifetime with MND, how positive he was and how much he did to effect change, that gave me hope."
And I hope the same. I hope other people can take that away from my story, that you can live in a hopeful way with MND.
Andy, and his Army, are showing what can be achieved when determination, love and community come together. And together, they are helping us towards our vision of a world free of MND.
To donate to Andy’s Army, go to: justgiving.com/team/andyarmy
By subscribing, you confirm that you agree with our terms and conditions.