On Friday 8 March 2024 Lynn take on the most incredible challenge - shaving her head to raise funds in memory of her sister's beloved partner, Brian.
"Brian was my brother-in-law. He was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in August last year.
My sister, Karen, and Brian went to live in Bulgaria in June last year and had only been there a couple of months when he received the diagnosis. The move to Bulgaria had taken two years, lots of hoops to jump through but they finally got there.
They came back to the UK for a couple of weeks because they hadn’t been in Bulgaria long enough to have medical insurance so Brian got meds in the UK.
They returned to Bulgaria because that’s where Brian wanted to be. He decided that he didn’t want to have treatment – it may have prolonged his life but he wanted to be in Bulgaria, his new home that took two years to make happen, and he didn’t really want to be ill with side effects from any invasive treatment.
My husband and I went over to see them in November – we all had a great last week together – lots of fun and laughs.
I can’t believe how he went downhill and died so quickly, a matter of a couple of days. He seemed ‘fine’ when we left but the following day, his breathing was faint and hard and he died quickly and suddenly.
In some respects, it is a blessing that he went quickly without too much pain and suffering.
Brian was a brave, wonderful man, who knew what he wanted and how he wanted to die. He made it ‘easier’ for Karen – she didn’t have to make any of the awful, heart-wrenching decisions that sometimes people have to make at times like this.
I am doing another fundraiser in April (Swimathon) for Macmillan and Cancer Research, that I suppose are linked more directly to Brian’s ‘situation’ as it were.
I wanted to do the head shave in memory of Brian. But, I also said in December 2014, when my Dad died at Willow Burn, that I would one day raise some funds for the hospice.
My Dad was there a few days and the care he received was second to none.
I was there when he died and it was a beautiful memory I will cherish forever. It was wonderful to be sat next to him, to talk to him and to be with him as he slipped away. A real honour."
If you would like to sponsor Lynn or send her 'Good Luck' messages, you can visit her personal fundraising page using the link below;
https://www.justgiving.com/page/lynn-taylor-1704545436703...
Lynn - you are truly inspirational - thank you for taking on this incredibly personal challenge and raising over £1,500.00 for Willow Burn Hospice in Brian's memory.
