On Mother’s Day this year, Sunday 27th March, I will be running the Liverpool Half Marathon, in memory of my gorgeous Mum, Jenny Rothin and will be raising money for The Mary Stevens Hospice, who cared for her amazingly, in her final three weeks.

For those that don’t know, Mum was diagnosed with terminal Metastatic Duodenal Adenocarcinoma in late February 2021, a rare and aggressive cancer. Unfortunately, after the bravest 13 Week battle she passed away the 25th May 2021. She fought with so much courage, dignity, humour and love but was taken way too soon from us all and in the cruelest way possible.

Many hear this said, but my Mum really was my best friend. I miss her kindness, her humour, her wisdom and her strength, but most of all her love. A huge piece of me has left with her gone, but I now do anything and everything I can with her in mind; which is why I’ve chosen to run on Mother’s Day. A day that will, no doubt, be very tough, but will be easier with the thought that she’ll be there alongside me as I run; just like we used to run together.

Our amazing local hospice, Mary Stevens, gave not only her, but myself and my Dad, the most heartfelt care, love and support whilst we were all there and I would love to be able to raise as much as possible in my first (but not last) fundraising venture for them! Their values are ‘care, compassion and kindness’ and they showed Mum not only that, but so much more while she was there. Nothing was too much trouble for any of them and half the time they felt like friends rather than nurses which was so comforting.

The Mary Stevens Hospice is such a fantastic place that unfortunately runs on a charity basis. They have both a Day Care Unit and an In-Patient Unit, but the In-Patient Unit was where Mum was lucky enough to spend her final three weeks, as they only have 10 beds available. However, to be able to provide this service to the community, they rely heavily on fundraising and donations as they only have 20% funding from the government. Some examples of where the money goes that has been generously donated by supporters are, £3 pays for an in-patient’s food for the day, £16 pays for one hour of nursing care, £30 pays for one hour of bereavement counselling and £694 pays for a patient to spend 24 hours in their In-Patient Unit, which is open 24/7, 365 days a year. 

Any donation made will be greatly appreciated, by not only myself, but the incredible staff at the hospice too. But also, thank you, to all of our friends and family for all of the love and support Dad and I have been given in the past 12 months. We appreciate it so much and will always carry Mum with us, loving her forever and never letting her memory go.💞x

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. 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.