This page is being shared by 247 Transport Solutions on behalf of our colleague Darren Haynes and his family. Darren is a long-standing coach driver with 247, and his wife Kellie Haynes worked with us for many years as a Passenger Assistant. They are part of the 247 family, and we are supporting them during this incredibly difficult time.

My name is Darren, and I am raising funds to help lay my wife, Kellie, to rest with the dignity and love she deserves.

At the end of 2024, Kellie was diagnosed with heart failure. It changed our lives overnight. She had to give up her work as a carer, something she loved deeply, but even then, she refused to stop caring for others. She continued working as a Passenger Assistant with 247, a role that brought her purpose and joy. Looking after people was simply who she was.

Because of her heart condition, Kellie could not get life insurance. In July 2025, wanting to protect her family and make sure she didn’t leave us struggling, she took out a funeral policy. At the time, her heart condition was being managed with medication, and she was coping well. She was still working, still smiling, still being Kellie.

Later in 2025, our world was shaken again when Kellie was diagnosed with bladder cancer. Even then, as her strength slowly faded, she was determined to keep working for as long as she could. Helping others gave her strength when her own was failing. She was due to begin radiotherapy on 15 December 2025 and remained hopeful that treatment would work and that she would soon be back doing the job she loved.

Sadly, after just nine days of radiotherapy, Kellie became desperately unwell. On Christmas Day, 25 December 2025, she was admitted to hospital with sepsis and critically low blood pressure. The doctors and nurses did everything they could, but nothing was working.

On 31 December 2025, I had to say goodbye to my beautiful wife, my best friend, and the love of my life.

Kellie was warm, kind, and completely selfless. She had a heart of gold and would help anyone if she was able, often putting herself last. After 23 years of marriage, her loss has left a hole in my heart that can never be filled. She leaves behind two beautiful children who adored her, and she had recently become a godparent to two young boys. She had so much more love to give and so much life left to live.

The funeral policy Kellie took out requires 12 payments before it will pay out. Only six payments had been made. When she arranged it, she was cancer-free and believed she was doing the right thing for our future. None of us could ever have imagined that she would be taken from us so quickly.

I am now facing the heartbreak of arranging Kellie’s funeral without the means to do it alone. I am trying to raise a minimum of £4,500 to give her the send-off she truly deserves. If you are able to donate, no matter how small, or even just share this page, it would mean more to me than words can say.

Your kindness will help us honour Kellie’s life and the incredible person she was. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to read this and for any support you are able to give.