The Eric Liddle Foundation

At the start of the Olympics in Paris it is apt that we hear about the Eric Liddle, the Scottish athlete who won  an Olympic gold medal in Paris 100 years ago.

Photos are thanks to The Eric Liddell Community and the Liddell Family.

The Guest speaker was John McMillan of the Eric Liddell Community  (ELC), a care charity and community hub based at 'Holy Corner' in Edinburgh -an appropriate speaker given that it was in the 1924 Paris Olympics that Scotsman Eric Liddell won the gold medal in the 400  metres after declining to run in the 100 metres because of his religious convictions. After Paris, Liddell lived as a missionary in China, dying in 1943 in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. The vision of the ELC is to ensure that no one lives in a community where they feel lonely or isolated, bringing people together  to enhance their health and wellbeing. ELC do this in a variety of ways: a day-care service provides specialist care for the elderly suffering from cognitive impairment, supporting seventy people on a weekly basis; a community-support programme aims to connect people living with dementia giving them a sense of community and shared understanding; an Open Community Programme for people facing loneliness and isolation arranges wellbeing lunches, meetings, groups and walks. John McMillan described 'The Eric Liddell 100’, a recently formed organisation which aims to celebrate  Liddell’s inspirational legacy, values and integrity, and to bring these achievements and personal qualities to future generations through education, sport and culture both here in Scotland and overseas. Hopefully Liddell’s name will live on as a beacon for qualities that represent the very best in sport and other activities. The meeting closed with a video of the recent 'Chariots of Fire Race' run on the St Andrews West Sands and organised by its founder, Ben, and the St Andrews Rotary Club. This hugely successful event has, since its inception, raised over £100,000 for good causes. The vote of thanks for this most interesting talk was given by Alex Clark.