Ardrossan man Tom Brookes is aiming far and high in his bid to raise funds for sight loss charity RNIB Scotland after his wife one day woke up with her sight deteriorating rapidly.

On Saturday, May 9, Tom and a friend will embark on a 96 mile walk of the West Highland Way from Milngavie to Fort William.

They aim to complete the journey in five days averaging 19 to 20 miles each day.

Not only that, they then intend to climb Ben Nevis when they get there – at 4,000 feet the highest mountain in the British Isles.

“I’ve done Ben Nevis before,” says Tom, “even though I was then, and still am, petrified of heights!” Tom was spurred on by the help RNIB Scotland has given to his wife Racheal.

After waking one morning to find a white mist clouding her vision, Racheal sight has deteriorated so much that she is now registered as blind and can only see outlines and shadows in far off. Close up, she has some limited vision.

The doctors remain unsure about the cause.

It was, of course, devastating for her, says Tom. “I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to wake up and there’s nothing there.

“When things we all take for granted are lost and gone, the world can become a lonely and isolated place.

“Our six year-old son Alastaire is a wee star and helps as much as he can while trying to lead a normal kid’s life.” However, help was available from RNIB Scotland’s Ayrshire Vision Support Service.

Its workers offer people the reassurance and help they need to come to terms with sight loss and find their lives again.

But the service very much depends on donations and fundraising to keep going.

“Racheal has had such a lot of great support from Gail at the Vision Support Service that I wanted to do something to support them in turn,” says Tom.

“That’s when I thought of doing the West Highland Way to raise funds for the service.

“If this walk goes well, we are even thinking of doing the Three Peaks challenge, the highest mountains in Scotland, England and Wales, in 24 hours at the end of June, again to raise money for RNIB.

You can sponsor Tom on his just giving page at justgiving.com/Tom-Brookes2.

The Ayrshire Vision Support Service ensures that people newly diagnosed with sight loss receive the help they need to adjust to a new kind of life.

It works at the crucial early stage to reassure people that they can still live as independently as possible.

Firstly the service offers emotional support to overcome the initial shock of accepting you will lose some or all of your sight.

Its workers help to explain the nature of the condition, what practical help, such as aids and equipment, can help you to retain independence, and what assistance is available such as disability benefits and travel concessions.

RNIB Scotland’s co-ordinator Clare Jewell said: “The Ayrshire Vision Support Service takes the pressure of hard-pressed healthcare staff who often don’t have the time to offer this level of in-depth counselling to patients themselves.

“But we do need the support of the public to help us to maintain the service.”