Heartbreak as ‘cruel’ diseases take beloved dad and auntie
SISTERS RAISING MONEY IN MEMORY OF ‘KIND AND CARING’ PAIR
TWO sisters are setting off on a journey in memory of two beloved family members who were taken from them too soon by cruel illnesses.
Kelly Lindsay and her sister Hayley Meads, from Alvaston, were left heartbroken after their father and auntie died of cancer and dementia within years of each other.
Their “caring” father and grandfather John Meads died from bowel cancer in 2017 at the age of 68, only two weeks after being diagnosed with the disease.
Their auntie, Carole Beck, died in March last year at the age of 65 after a year-long decline caused by “cruel” vascular dementia.
Kelly, who works as a healthcare assistant, said they wanted to do something that would not only help worthy causes, but allow them to remember the “kind and caring” family members who were snatched away from them.
The 36-year-old said it had been tough to deal with the loss of their father and auntie, who brought so much joy to their lives.
“My dad loved being a granddad,” she said. “As soon as I had kids he doted on them. He was such a kind man and he was humble. “I remember crying to him saying it wasn’t fair and he said there were children with cancer and that wasn’t fair.
“He said he was lucky to have had a good life. He must have been scared but he didn’t show it.” Over the course of two weeks, John went from showing no symptoms to being in a hospital bed surrounded by family. “There was nothing they could do for my dad,” Kelly said. “It was very quick, he had no symptoms and it was over in two weeks. It took him very quickly – that was almost a blessing.
“We were all holding his hand as he took his last breath, he had as beautiful a death as he could have.”
Not long after John died, Kelly’s auntie Carole was diagnosed with vascular dementia
Kelly says it was heartbreaking to see her auntie decline from someone full of life to not being able to walk or recognise her family.
“It’s a cruel disease - it was horrendous,” she said. “She was so lovely and would bend over backwards for anybody. She would give you her last penny.
“She started to forget people and then lost the ability to walk. I remember my mum would go round to see her and she wouldn’t recognise my mum at all.
“They were very close sisters and she thought she was a taxi driver. “My mum was with her when she took her final breath, but she wouldn’t have recognised her. “We were only allowed 10 people at the funeral because of the pandemic. It was heartbreaking.” Kelly and Hayley are walking from Derby to Fantasy Island in Ingoldmells on the Lincolnshire coast in memory of John and Carole. They will set off on July 20 and over the course of three days walk more than 90 miles to raise money for Cancer Research UK and Dementia UK.
Kelly said: “As much as these charities mean a lot to us we are very aware that a lot of charities have had a big hit due to Covid-19 and we wanted to do our bit in helping as much as we can.”
Kelly and Hayley will be live streaming parts of their walk on Facebook, and people can donate on their GoFundMe page.
I remember crying to him saying it wasn’t fair and he said there were children with cancer and that wasn’t fair. Kelly Lindsay