After Kenny became seriously ill, his family turned to Farleigh. His daughter, Rebecca, explains how our care and support was essential in helping them all through his final days.
“My dad, Kenny, worked at B&Q for many years before he retired. He used to restore old cars and was happiest in his shed or enjoying the sunshine in his garden.
At Christmas 2023, my family noticed that he wasn’t eating much. He’d previously had a heart attack and had blood clots in his lungs, so wasn’t in great health. We were very worried.
Dad didn’t like hospitals and never wanted to ‘make a fuss’, so didn’t tell us he was passing blood when going to the toilet. When my mum, Susan, found out, she got him to have some tests which showed that, unfortunately, he had a tumour.
Soon after, Dad had surgery followed by an intensive course of chemotherapy in June 2024. By the end of the year, he was having breathing problems and we were told there was a shadow on his lungs.
Sadly, Dad’s health deteriorated and he was in a lot of pain around Easter. He stopped eating, spoke very little and was sleeping most of the time. My brother, Robin, went to the hospital with my parents, but they left without speaking with the doctor because they didn’t want to know how ill Dad really was.
Because he wasn’t eating, we were told Dad only had about three weeks left to live. My brother contacted Farleigh Hospice to see if they could help us to care for him at home.
A lovely lady from the Farleigh team came to talk with us. She explained what we should expect as Dad’s health deteriorated and the care that the hospice provides. She also told us about Farleigh’s Clinical Advice Line, that we could call for guidance on his symptoms and medication.
Mum is in her 70s and had recently had a hip replacement, so she’d been struggling to look after Dad. Farleigh’s carers visited twice a day to help with his personal care. He liked to shave daily but hadn’t been able to in months, so they gave him a proper shave, which was really lovely.
The hospice also made sure he had the right pain relief and arranged for him to have a hospital-type bed downstairs, so he could be comfortable at home. It was such a relief to have this support after trying to cope on our own for nearly 18 months.
Thanks to Farleigh, Dad was able to spend his last few days with his family, looking out onto his garden, which was very important to him and us. He died at home on 15 May 2025, four days after his 77th birthday.
Although we were expecting it, it was still a shock when Dad died. However, because Farleigh had taken the time to explain what would happen, I felt more prepared and able to support Mum.
I don’t know what my family would have done without Farleigh Hospice’s care and support. They listened to us when we had no one to turn to and helped us to make Dad’s last days better. Everything they did was second to none and we are so grateful.”