Help for Heidi

Having won last years Charity Carp match, my partner Lee Brown and I had the privilege of choosing the charity to support this year, I already knew the cause I wanted to support and hoped we could win so we could choose this one and thanks mainly to Lee we pulled it off and he straight away agreed to this cause as soon as I had explained to him.

I will let my amazing friend Heidi explain in her words and believe me it took a lot to get her to write something down and I told her it was just for our facebook page where just the competitors are able to view it but knowing Heidi I am sure she will not mind me putting it on here so you can all see what an incredible and selfless lady my friend Heidi is and how much she has helped so many people, if we can raise any amount to enable Heidi to create just one special memory for her lovely family then we would have achieved something amazing and I thank you now for helping this heartfelt cause, I'll let Heidi have the last words. Dean xx

HI everyone. My name is Heidi and I am an old school friend of Dean's. He has told me about the wonderful thing that you are doing to help me and my family enjoy some precious time together. I can't even begin to tell you how touched i am, and how humbled i am about the generosity and spirit of people that i have never met. Dean and i go a long way back to our school days. They were happy times and i'm so thankful that such an old standing friend feels compelled to help an old mate out, despite not being in daily touch like we once were. I THINK Dean wants to help me because of how i have helped other people affected by breast cancer since i was first diagnosed in 2008. I decided that i wanted to make a conscious decision to turn my negative into a postiive and to make a difference to other people going through similar things. During the past few years i have 7 marathons under my belt and several half marathons. I launched breast cancer awareness month on page 3 of the sun to show that a woman can still look feminine and sexy despite having a mastectomy (i've done this twice now for other mag's and my kids still don't know! No one wants to see their Mum naked in the paper do they but i hope one day they will be proud). I became an ambassador for break through breast cancer, and a patient advocate working with hospitals to improve practice with chemo patients. In my spare time i have raised thousands for charity. I have supported many people individually and always tried to show the big c who is boss. In recent years i became a fundraiser for a breast cancer support centre, being a big part of the £2.5 million appeal. I am proud of what i have achieved. Last year i was given the devastating news that my breast cancer has spread to my lungs and i have an inoperable tumour behind my collar bone. I have been given a couple of years to live. I am viewing this the same way that i viewed it in 2008. There is life after secondary breast cancer and i can still achieve great things. And I am. I am still smiling through the tears, and doing all that i can to prepare my gorgeous family for the difficult years to come. Jim and i have been together for 28 years, he is my soul mate and best friend. My daughter Meg is 18 and my son Louis is 15. It destroys me to think of their lives moving forwards without me and i am determined not to waste a second on wallowing in self pity, so i dont. The money that you are intending to raise for us, will enable us to make some more memories. To spend some quality time away from hospitals and reality, which is so important. I know that in years to come it will give my family and friends so much comfort to know that my final years were spent with the people i love, laughing and i hope, role modelling to my family that no matter what life throws at you, that you can make a silver lining out of it. So, whether you raise £5.00 or £500 it is of no matter, the thought alone of what Dean, and clearly how much you all think of Dean to support him makes me smile. I truly am so grateful, touched and thankful for having such lovely people around me. I would love to finish my message with some sort of knowledge about fishing, but alas I have only been fishing once with an ex boyfriend at 17, where i drank a can of special brew, got told off for playing music and left. So guys, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Heidi xxxxxxx