Pedal power for beloved nan
A FAMILY are honouring their much-loved mam and nana’s final wish as they carry out a charity bike ride to Lourdes in France.
Lillian Dixon passed away aged 74 in January 2022 after being rediagnosed with breast cancer.
A committed Roman Catholic, she devoted a lot of her retirement to supporting Catholic schools in the area, becoming a Foundation Governor at Christ the King Catholic School in Thornaby.
Lourdes is a popular pilgrimage destination for Catholics all over the world, and Lillian’s family thought it would be a fitting tribute to their ‘absolute fighter’ of a mam, aunty and nana. Eight cyclists all made up of Lillian’s relatives set off last weekend on a gruelling bike from Thornaby to Lourdes, clocking up 1,050 miles and raise funds for Macmillan cancer support.
Lillian’s four children and wider family group decided to take on the challenge, called Lillian’s Two Wheeled Pilgrimage, in honour of their amazing mam and nana to channel their grief positively and as a thank you to the Macmillan nurses who helped Lillian in her final weeks of life.
Our sister title The Gazette first spoke to Lillian’s eldest son, 45-year-old Steve Walker, back in March on his family’s plans to honour Lillian in the most fitting way possible.
Steve said: “Mam had developed a myeloma as well as breast cancer, she bravely had a mastectomy in the middle of lockdown which was so difficult because we couldn’t see her. The breast cancer unfortunately came back in the summer and although she was an absolute fighter, the treatment made her incredibly poorly so she decided to make the most of her last six months with us.
“She passed ten days before her birthday, but over Christmas whilst she was still with us we thought of ideas on how we could fundraise to say thank you to the Macmillan nurses who helped her during her final days. With the help of mam, we decided we wanted to raise £10,000 to support the amazing nurses who helped her towards the end of her life, they were absolutely incredible and felt like family to us.”
Before even putting pedal to pavement on their 1,050 mile journey, the family cycling managed to smash their £10,000 target.
Steve added: “We have been bowled over with the support we’ve received to reach our initial target of £10,000 before we have even set off. It’s testament to the impact my mam had on her community.
“As a family we all pulled together to take on this challenge as a tribute to the incredible lady my mam was.
“She was very active on social media and even used her platforms to help fundraise in the last few weeks of her life once she was made aware of what we were doing and why.”
In total there are eight riders, including three of Lillian’s children, Paul Walker, 50, Gillian Hoban, 50, Mandy Kennedy, 52, and grandchildren Luke Walker, Brooke Hoban, and son-in-law Paul Kennedy and nephew’s David Bradshaw and Andrew Bradshaw. The cyclists have already passed the halfway stage. They are being accompanied on the journey by a support vehicle manned by Steve who is carrying long term injury and unable to ride, and grandchildren Quinn Hoban, Jacob Walker and daughter-in-law Nicola Walker.
Lillian devoted many hours of her retirement to visiting the children at Christ The King Catholic School helping them read and often helping them prepare for their first Holy Communion.
She even visited famed Catholic pilgrimage spot Lourdes five years ago and was set to return before the pandemic and cancer intervened.
Lillian decided to stop treatment so she could be more comfortable for her final months – her aim was to be around for Christmas and ideally her 75th birthday on February 5.
She died 10 days short of her birthday, surrounded by her family.
Anyone interested in the group’s progression can visit the Lillian’s Two Wheeled Pilgrimage Facebook page and donate to the Just Giving Page.
We have been bowled over with the support we’ve received to reach our initial target
STEVE WALKER