Extraordinary LIVES
MY DAUGHTER KATE MARKS
FROM the day Kate was born, she was an absolute joy. Adventurous and caring, at the age of 18, she travelled to Israel to work for several months in a kibbutz, where she made lots of friends from all over the world. Back home, she worked in factories and as a waitress to save up enough money to backpack across India for several months with her boyfriend, Len Brooks, whom she had met in the kibbutz. They loved it so much that when they got back home, they worked hard to save enough for a second trip. Their travelling days were put on hold temporarily when they moved to London, where Kate worked in Harrods and Selfridges. They married and had two children, George in 2000 — who went on a trip to India with his parents when he was eight years
old — and April in 2009. After her divorce, Kate worked as a nursery teacher, a job she adored. In 2011, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She had an operation and continued her life as a brilliant mum and indulged her passion for music festivals — her favourite band was the Red Hot Chili Peppers. In 2017, she met Steve Marks, whom she described as the love of her life. Sadly, last year, the cancer returned with a vengeance. After a few weeks in hospital, Kate moved to St Michael’s Hospice in Basingstoke, Hampshire, where she married Steve in September. Kate moved back in with me and my husband until she passed away. Throughout her illness, her friends and colleagues were a wonderful support. Kate’s brother, Darren, will be running in the London Marathon at the end of this month in her memory and all donations will go to the hospice, which does such amazing work. We all love and miss Kate so much, our extraordinary girl taken far too soon.
KATE ELIZABETH MARKS (nee Chilcott), born April 16, 1976; died October 8, 2018, aged 42.