Hi, I’m Michelle’s daughter and those close to us know just how special our bond is. I’m sure most know that mum passed away at 10:46am 19th July peacefully with me telling her how proud of her I am, how brave she is, and how loved she is. She knew exactly what she was doing and she waited until it was just me and her, just as it always has been.

Mums battle started in March with emergency surgery and a colostomy bag, and then we were told she had bowel cancer. Not long after we found out that the bowel cancer was actually secondary, and mum had endometrial cancer. She then underwent a hysterectomy only to be told the cancer had also spread to her liver and lymph nodes. She came to live with me needing 24 hour support. Mum was supposed to begin chemotherapy and immunotherapy to give her longer with us but she got really poorly really quickly neither of us would ever have thought things would change so fast.

Neither of us are ever ones to ask for help, but I know this is a time that mum would tell me not to worry by myself. As I’m now left by myself to make sure that mum gets the send off she so very deserves, I’m reaching out for even the smallest bit of help. I really don’t want to but as we never got to get any legal documents in place, there’s next to no help available to me and I am so determined to give mum the absolute best. I truly do feel sad and embarrassed to have to ask and it’s the last thing I want to think about while I’m trying to come to terms with everything.

Mum has been through an incredible amount and always been so strong. No matter what she was ever going through she always put us first. Mum cared for Jim in his last days and fought to give him everything he deserved and I want to the same for her. Me and my husband are of course covering as much as we possibly can but with her 5 grandchildren to think about too we simply can not cover everything. So I am reaching out for any help even if it’s the tiniest amount, it will make such a difference.

She deserves the very best. The most incredible woman with so much strength and so much love for her family and those she cared about, I owe it to her to give her exactly what she deserves.

I love you so much mum I know you would tell me not to make a fuss, but I told you I would regardless. This is the hardest goodbye I’ll ever have to say, and I want it to be just right.

x