A family of fun runners are to take part in the Exmouth Twilight Walk’s first ever 5k-event in memory of their loved one who was looked after by Hospiscare.
Chris Ratcliffe, from Exmouth, her daughter Lizzie, and 13-year-old granddaughter Lily, are taking part in the fun run to raise funds in memory of Chris’s daughter-in-law, Cindy, who died in the care of Hospiscare last October; also taking part are Cindy’s sister, and her best friend, Tara and Kirsten, who will be walking in her memory.
Cindy was treated for breast cancer and cared for at home by Hospiscare’s local community nurses, but her final few days were spent on a ward in the hospice in Exeter.
Her family is keen to raise funds for Hospiscare for other families facing terminal illness; they spoke about the difference the support had made.
Chris said: “Once the community nurses became involved it took a lot of the worry out of things, not just for Cindy but for the rest of the family, too.
“Then, at the end, when she went into the Exeter hospice, the care she received was amazing, and we were completely comforted.
“Cindy was such a huge part of our family and it meant so much to know that she was getting the best care possible. And that’s why we’re doing the fun run – to make sure that other families can have the same care that was given to us.”
Cindy was being treated for a recurrence of breast cancer when she and Chris’s son, Martin, married in December 2016.
In June last year they moved into their longed-for dream home.
Their happiness was short-lived when Cindy’s condition worsened; she died at the Exeter hospice shortly before the couple’s first wedding anniversary.
“Cindy was an amazing person, a one-off. She was big hearted, always put other people first, and was so positive and encouraging to everyone. She used to say, ‘You can do anything you want to’. Each year I’d been promising myself that I would take up running, but never quite managing it. But this year I vowed I’d do it for Cindy, so I started training in January.”
For Twilight Walk and fun run places, on July 7, sign up online at www.twilightwalk.org.uk or on 01392 688020.
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