St Luke’s Hospice, Sheffield: Why Katie is supporting 50th anniversary Celebration of Life

Jane, who lived with husband Paul in Chapeltown, spent the final six weeks of her life being supported by the St Luke’s Community team when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2019.

And it was the memory of the care Jane and Paul received that prompted daughter Katie to get in training for the tough sporting challenge, eventually raising a fantastic £5,782.

And now Katie is sharing her family’s story and her memories of that time as she supports the St Luke’s 50th anniversary Celebration of Life event, which will be held in the St Luke’s Ecclesall Road South Gardens on July 10, from 2pm to 4pm.

“We’d had one particularly bad time when we had actually had to call an ambulance because mum was in so much pain but when the St Luke’s Community Team got involved, all that changed,” Katie explained.

“They were just wonderful, the most amazing people and they were complete specialists in the type of care and pain relief mum needed.

“It’s a time when power is completely taken away from you and you are in somebody else’s hands so it was really important to mum and dad that they were with people who knew what they were doing - it gave my dad the confidence that mum had the very best care she could have.

“Most importantly, St Luke’s had time for mum and they made her life as bearable as it possibly could be in the six weeks between her diagnosis and her death.

“The whole team were super practical and for us as a family, the most vital thing was that they were not all doom and gloom - they were really positive, which was very important, and they knew exactly what they were doing.”

At the same time, the St Luke’s team were also able to offer support to husband Paul.

“Mum didn’t get the chance to properly experience everything St Luke’s does but my dad did make use of the St Luke’s bereavement counselling for a short period and found it very helpful,” Katie said.

“They’d been married almost 40 years and had been together since mum was just 17 and the counselling helped dad to understand that it is okay to speak to somebody about that loss and reaffirm that it is very hard.

“The people of Sheffield know how important St Luke’s is for the whole city - it’s care for people who don’t have very long left and it is the best care you could possibly receive.

“A lot of people at some point in their life will need to rely on St Luke’s and that’s why offering support is so important, making sure other can people can access the sort of care my mum and dad received.”

Guests at this year’s Celebration of Life event will be able to enjoy tea and coffee, cakes and strawberries and cream or a full afternoon tea by Jameson’s Tea Rooms of Sheffield.

There will be wreath making sessions by Sheffield florist Meadows and Mulberry as well as garden games, crafts and other children’s entertainment as well as a fundraising raffle and music.

Visitors will also be able to share their own special memories on a St Luke’s daisy and in the St Luke’s Book of Celebration.

To find out more visit www.stlukeshospice.org.uk/support/celebration-of-life