St Barnabas House: New Sunrise to Remember walk was 'an uplifing experience'

There were 286 adults and children who joined the walk from Worthing Leisure Centre on Saturday, June 25. They followed either a 10k or 20k route, ending with a walk down Ferring Rife to the beach to watch the sunrise together.

Leanne Williams, 40, from Littlehampton, said: "The event was amazing. Being part of something special for such an awesome cause and doing it in memory of our amazing mum made it all worthwhile.“We wanted to take part in Sunrise to Remember to give something back to St Barnabas House as we are so grateful, we had them in our lives.”

Leanne took on the 10k route with sister Kelly and partner Andrew in memory of Pat Williams, who died in 2021.

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Leanne said: "The word I would use to describe my mum is amazing. She was always there for us and she was the best nanny to all her grandchildren."

Pat was first diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014 and battled the condition over the next seven years.Leanne said: "Mum had cancer about six times. She had it in her bowel and in her liver, too. She was a very strong lady.”

For a time, Pat's treatment stopped as her health was starting to improve. She was having check-ups every six months or so and Leanne said the family was feeling 'much more positive about everything'. But in August 2021, she took a turn for the worse.

Leanne said: "Her health suddenly deteriorated. She couldn’t move without being sick, so we had lots of tests done again and they found out she had a tumour in the lower left side of her brain.”The tumour was removed and a three-month check-up booked for December but in November, Pat took a turn again.

Leanne said: "We found out that in under three months, the tumour had regrown and spread, and there was nothing they could do.”

It was at this point that the family met the team at St Barnabas House and they made it possible for Pat to move in with Leanne in her final few weeks, as she wanted to stay at home with her family.Leanne said: "Their nurses would come out to visit us a few times a day, and their support meant a lot to our family.

"When someone you love is dying, you want to do all you can for them and do everything right. St Barnabas House were there to support us and reassure us that we were doing the best we could, and that Mum was in the best place possible.

"We made some amazing memories together in that time. Mum loved reading but her eyesight deteriorated quickly, so I offered to read books to her. All I had in the house was kids’ books, so she opted for the Roald Dahl collection, and I read them to her.”

Pat died on December 15, 2021, at the age of 73, with Leanne and Kelly, sister Maureen and cousin Carol by her side. Leanne was reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to her and the time and she said 'it’s memories like that that make it easier'.