Sheffield woman living in Australia in desperate plea for help to fly home to see dying dad one final time

Lisa Martin, from Firth Park, has set up an online fundraisinmg appeal on GoFundMe for help to pay for her to fly home from Australia to see her dad, who has been diagnosed with terminal cancer.

The 33-year-old moved to Australia eight years ago to backpack around the country and, after meeting her now-husband and becoming pregnant with her son, decided to stay there full time.

Six days after visiting Lisa in Australia for his grandson’s first birthday in 2018, her father Alan Collins, 76, was diagnosed with stomach and oesophagus cancer.

In November 2021, Lisa was told in a video call with her parents that her father had received a stage 4 liver cancer diagnosis. She was eight-weeks pregnant with her daughter at the time.

She said: “I was absolutely devastated. To get that call again was horrible.”

One month later, in December 2021, she received a call from her mother that his condition was terminal and he had 12 months to live.

Lisa is hoping she will be able to travel home so that her father can meet his newborn granddaughter before he passes.

She said: “It would mean so much just to get to hug my dad again, for my son to see his pops again, he’s only seen him once when my dad came to visit us, and for my daughter to meet her pops.

“My daughter is the only grandchild my dad hasn’t met yet so it would mean the absolute world to me and my family.”

The Sheffield mum-of-two and her family were due to fly home to England in June 2020 however their plans were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

She said: “I’m struggling mentally with not being able to be at home. I’m extremely close with both my parents so not being there to help my mum care for my dad, even just for a couple of weeks, and spend these last precious moments with them is heartbreaking.

“If we are able to get home, it will give us all the peace of mind that we were able to have that last bit of family time we all want so much and that my dad has been able to see myself, my husband and his grandchildren one last time.”

The GoFundMe page was set up by Lisa’s close friend, Natalie Simpkins, to help raise money for Lisa and her travel from her current home in rural Ingham, Queensland.

The page urges friends and family on Facebook to help Lisa.

It reads: “We know he’s a fighter. He’s 13 months into a 12 month diagnosis. With the power of Facebook family and friends, please let this be possible and make this happen.”

At the time of writing, the GoFundMe appeal has raised £126 from 10 donations. The target is £9,000.

Lisa’s friends and family members have been supportive and are looking into other ways to help raise the money needed to reunite the family. Her niece is looking to raise money by abseiling and her sister-in-law, who runs a pub, is also hoping to help.

If you would like to donate to the fundraiser and help Lisa and her family get back to England you can find the page here.