88-year-old Scottish resident raised £1.5 million to build a nursing home (2 photos)

Rosemary Stevenson, an 88-year-old resident of Scotland, has been working as a truck driver every day for the past 20 years to make her long-time dream come true - to build a nursing home in her village.





Thanks to the help of volunteers, mostly the same elderly people, the woman has already managed to raise an impressive amount - 1.5 million pounds! However, Stevenson does not plan to stop there: due to the rise in prices for building materials, the project needs about half a million pounds more.

Stevenson says she realised 20 years ago that the authorities were failing to provide the support they needed for older people, particularly those living with dementia, so she set out to raise funds to build a safe place for older people in Ballantrae.



Rosemary set up Ballantrae Rural Initiative Care in the Community (BRICC), a charity that recently won an award for its contribution to the village.

"It's fantastic how far we've come, but there's still a long way to go. We'll take any help we can get to make sure we reach our goal. This is a community effort, not just mine. It would be great if people realized how wonderful this care facility would be and helped us finally make this dream a reality,” Stevenson said.

Now, thanks to Rosemary, the village already has a social center for the elderly. There, volunteers give out furniture, walking aids, and other needed items to local residents for very little or no money. There is a consignment shop next door: all proceeds from the sale of items donated by residents go to Stevenson’s project.