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On the 27th March 2017 my dad died at St Anne's Hospice in Newport. Dad was diagnosed with cancer in early October 2016 and his health immediately and rapidly deteriorated over the following months. However, I was incredibly fortunate that Dad was able to walk me down the aisle at my New Year's Eve wedding to Andy; we decided to bring our wedding date forward after Dad was given 6 months to live. This was an incredibly special day which dad absolutely loved and he talked about it right up until his last days.

Dad received regular visits from a wonderful St David's Nurse to our home and both my parents found these incredibly helpful. Dad spent six days in St Anne's hospice, as a family we thought he was only going to be there a few days so that his pain could be managed. We soon realised how ill he was and that he was going to be staying at the hospice indefinitely. These six days were incredibly difficult for the whole family, but the team of nurses and doctors at the hospice helped us so much in many ways. They also made us endless cups of tea...

Dad described the nurses as 'angels sent from heaven', which is exactly what they were! They spent time with dad talking and listening to him, which I am sure they enjoyed as he was such a charmer. They spent time with individual family members, as well as with us all at Dad's bedside, listening to our stories and joining in the laughter and the tears. We knew he was in the most capable of hands, leaving us to have quality time with Dad in the last days of his life. I am certain that they saved us in so many ways.

I have never felt such a personal attachment to a charity or such determination to raise money for a cause. Without the hospice the end of Dad's life could have been very different and the grieving even more painful for the family than it already is. I am trying to undertake a challenge that will test me mentally and physically, but one that I can achieve so that I can raise money for this amazing charity.

On the 4th August I will set off to complete 10 consecutive ascents of Pen-y-Fan. This amounts to around 5700m of climbing, higher than Mont Blanc and even higher than the climb from base camp to the top of Everest. We hope as many friends and family can come to Pen-Y-Van at some point during the day to say hello, have a cuppa or even join in a leg of the challenge! I will be starting the trek at approximately midday. Please come and help me at any point. I expect to finish approximately 24 hours later...

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