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 and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

It was 1952 I believe when Keith was thirteen years of age, that he was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease.Then it was quite a rare illness, hence why I use the word eventually. Apparently his health detioriated drastically and he was admitted into Liverpool Broadgreen Hospital where he was operated on, his diseased parts had to be removed i.e. large and small intestines etc.  Immediately after this operation he had become so poorly, that from being a happy schoolboy, complete with a newspaper round, done early morning and again in the evening after school, his weight dropped to four stone. So this may give you some idea of how ill he became, bearing in mind that he was thirteen years of age. His body was unable to get the nutrients from his food, even though they tried to supplement this with vitamins etc. Hospital doctors instructed him to go onto a high protein diet, which he did and he also had to eat very regularly.

 

In 1978 we took a trip to see relatives in Canada where Keith was a six foot seventeen stone man. We have two daughters, whom he was very proud of; he was very involved in his home and family. Although throughout his life he suffered this terrible debilitating illness for forty seven years, he was a fairly even tempered person, never complained, just ready to get on with his lot in life. Numerous times he would have to go into hospital, and he was, yes, the joker of the ward, where he would confiscate the nurses shoes and throw them out of the window as a joke. One time, one of the nurses had to do the ward rounds with Sister minus her shoes, before the patients went to sleep for the night.

 

It was 2000, just eight weeks after we had spent a holiday in Madeira. Keith was diagnosed with Cancer, in his chest,bowel,liver, the primary was not detected,yes he also had Crohn’s. He died just two and a half weeks later at the age of sixty. It was not until the last two weeks of his life, that either of us new he had Cancer, although he made many visits to doctors over the last three years of his life.It had gone undetected or it was thought to be a re-occurrence of Crohn’s Disease.

 

I am telling you this little story, in order that you may see how necessary funds for Collitis,Crohn’s Disease  and Cancer are. For firstly research into these illnesses and also for a new bowel unit at St Georges Hospital, London. I believe that it is the only means to combat these illnesses and find a cure. Here in England we have the professionalism, expertise and ability for this to be done. Alas without money, all these qualities are wasted.Remember these illnesses could hit you and me. Please save lives, give your donations generously