Help Us Bring David Home

My name is Terrie, and I’m reaching out during the most heartbreaking and overwhelming time of my life. While we were in Egypt, my partner David began feeling unwell.

We saw the hotel doctor four times between 8am and 6:30pm. Each time we were told something different, and by the end of the day the doctor suddenly said David had a “bad heart.” We were sent to the hospital, but even there nothing made sense. David was still alert, still insisting he felt fine, and we were left frightened and unsure of what was really happening.

Egyptian medical processes and laws are very different to ours, and from the moment we arrived at the hospital, everything became a blur of uncertainty, conflicting information, and fear. At one point, I was even detained by Egyptian military police and both mine and David’s passports were taken. I also had to attend court while still trying to understand what was happening to him. These experiences were deeply traumatic, and even now I struggle to process them.

Our travel insurance was absolutely incredible and covered everything while we were abroad, and I will forever be grateful for that support. But despite that help, the emotional trauma, the fight to get him home, and the costs we now face here in the UK have been overwhelming.

Eventually, I fought to get David home on an air ambulance. Even that journey was filled with challenges. It wasn’t without stoppers. But David didn't have a voice. I will always be his voice. I fought, never stopped fighting for him to be returned home. We couldn’t land in Newcastle because of the fog. We had to land in Manchester, two hospitals cancelled on us, leaving us stuck on the tarmac for over an hour and a half. The medical team were desperately trying to find somewhere for David, and when the final hospital accepted him, they told us they had never seen or experienced anything like this situation in their department before.

Shortly after we arrived, David’s life support was switched off. He got his final wish. His choice. He was brain stem dead for 6 days. After everything we tried, everything we fought through, we still lost him. They didn’t just take a man that day they took my love. He was mine, and our life together was taken from me in a way I will never fully understand.

Who David Was

David wasn’t just my partner he was a fantastic dad to five beautiful children and a devoted grandad who adored his family. He loved music, he loved fishing, and he even kept fish in the back garden. He was old school in the best possible way a true gentleman. Kind, caring, hardworking, and completely devoted to the people he loved.

He worked his socks off his whole life. He had a dry sense of humour, the kind that made you laugh even when he barely cracked a smile. He smiled on the inside, and those who knew him understood exactly what that meant.

We shared 26 fantastic years together. He was my world, my comfort, my constant and losing him has left a hole that nothing will ever fill.

Why I’m Asking for Help

The grief has been devastating, and now I’m facing the financial burden of arranging his funeral and dealing with everything that comes after such a traumatic loss. These are costs no one ever expects to face, especially after such a long and difficult journey.

I’m asking for help whether through a donation or by sharing this page to ease some of the pressure during a time when grief has already taken so much. Your support will help give David the dignified farewell he deserves and help me navigate the aftermath of this unimaginable experience.

Thank you for reading, for caring, and for holding us in your hearts during this incredibly painful time.

With love,

Terrie