After nearly 18 years together, we'll be getting married in April 2015 and we hope the occasion will inspire relatives, friends, and well-wishers to dig deep for charity.

Instead of a traditional wedding gift list, we're inviting donations to good causes and top of the list is this charity linked to Basildon Hospital where Les has recently undergone lifesaving surgery.

He says: “This is a tribute to the skills of surgeons Mark Zammit and Omar Mownah, the colorectal nursing team,  and nursing staff on Burstead Ward. Without the incredible dedication and care of this specialist team, there's a good chance I wouldn't be here today.

“Being diagnosed with cancer is a great crystallizer of thoughts and when I first went into hospital a year ago I vowed that if I pulled through, the first thing I would do is propose to Ann. Luckily, she quickly recovered from the shock and said yes  – and the rest is history.

“We've always got on incredibly well together and after 18 years, I  reckoned it was time to stop shilly-shallying and get down on one knee.

“At our age,  we've got everything we're ever likely to need so we thought this would be a great opportunity to help raise much-needed funds for good causes close to our hearts.”

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.