She was our absolute rock
A dad-of-four proposed to his partner of 26 years just weeks before she died.
Heartbroken Mark Lawrie, 46, has paid tribute to his “rock” – Ayr gran-of-three Lee-Ann Rankin – who died aged 48 from secondary cervical cancer last week.
Lee-Ann died at Ayr Hospital on Saturday, January 23 with Mark and her mum able to say goodbye.
Mark says his fiancèe was “loved by everybody” and is now at peace after living with the disease that had returned for a second time.
Mark and Lee-Ann have four daughters, Hayleigh, 25, Chloe, 23, Broghan, 20, and Kaydee, 14, and three grandsons, Kenzie, 9, Leo, 6, and three-year-old Jase.
The family, from the town’s Kincaidston, were told the devastating news that Lee-Ann’s illness was incurable after she beat cervical cancer in 2016.
Tumours had been found in her lymph nodes, groin and liver with radiotherapy the only treatment on offer.
But as the year progressed, the devoted mum’s condition deteriorated.
Mark, who met Lee-Ann during a difficult time in their lives, wanted to pop the question on Christmas Day but his plans were delayed due to the wedding ring not arriving on time.
He told the Post: “Lee-Ann is painfree now, we were together 26 years, I recently proposed to her just after Christmas.
“I didn’t get the chance to get married. We were always here for each other, she was so stubborn, she was just dead lovable, she was my rock, my world.
“When I proposed she was over the moon, she wasn’t expecting it at all.
“I wanted to do it on Christmas Day but the ring didn’t arrive on time. I had this big grand gesture planned out where I’d play our favourite song – Shania Twain ‘Still the One’ – but when the ring arrived I just did it straight away, and that made it even more special for her.”
Mark is forever thankful to the staff at Ayr Hospital who allowed him to spend the last moments with Lee-Ann and tell her how loved she was.
He said: “She was taken into hospital on the Wednesday afternoon as the doctor was concerned for her.
“We were told she was getting moved to another ward on the Saturday afternoon. The staff nurse called to say that she only had hours to a day left and that she needs her family.
“I told her I loved her, the kids loved her, she was my rock, I told her her grandkids loved her, we were able to show her a video message they made for her. If I never got to say goodbye to her, I’d be like a jigsaw with a piece missing. That nurse did so much for me for allowing us to see her.”
Friends have rallied around the family by setting up an online fundraiser which has since surpassed its target of £2,000.
Mark has hailed the support from the community and his daughters and added: “She loved being a mum and a gran, the boys adored her and she adored them.
“They have all been brilliant for me, they have been my rock.
“She gave her kids all the love and support she could ever give them, she wasn’t just their mum, she was their best friend.
“She was well loved by everybody, she was a party animal, she would outdrink anyone.
“She just made the most of it all.” Lee-Ann was laid to rest yesterday (Tuesday) at Ayr Crematorium.
The family asked anyone wishing to pay their respects to line the route for her final journey or stand outside the crematorium, with the private service only holding 20 people due to coronavirus restrictions.