Alex was an incredible, shining man.  He was more than a wonderful, son, husband, brother, uncle, grandson, nephew and cousin, or colleague and friend.  He was, truly, a gentle-man.  This page was set up to support the work of the British Liver Trust, initially with donations made at Alex's funeral and with the gift of £3000 he left in his will.  The support has been staggering and we aim to keep it going .

Alex had an auto-immunity disorder called 'Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis', or 'PSC', which causes scarring to the liver, particularly to the bile ducts.  This scarring can cause all sorts of complications, including but not limited to liver cancer or cancer of the bile ducts. PSC is a rare disorder, but there are many other disorders like PSC which also cause liver disease.  It is a sad fact that The British Liver Trust is massively overlooked and under supported as a charity.  However, liver disease kills more than diabetes and road accidents put together and is the only cause of death in the UK that is still increasing yearly.  Identifying liver disease is hard as many disorders are symptom less until it is too late.  Cancer patients cannot have liver transplants, besides which transplants are hard to come by and often fatal.  In fact any liver operation is extremely dangerous and carries a high fatality risk.  This is why we need more research, and why we need GPs and those working in primary care to better understand livers and liver disease so that early detection and prevention can be achieved.

The BLT has secured funding for a project with the Royal College of GPs.  The money raised here is ring-fenced to directly support this work. BLT are going to be working with them to create training materials and tools for GPs to spot earlier signs of liver damage, and better care for patients like Alex. With all of our fundraising we can ensure it happens.  I know this is something Alex would be extremely supportive of.  

Alex was astonishing in how he handled his illness.  The PSC caused bile to build up in his body on more than one occasion over the years, which caused him to become extremely jaundiced, fatigued, caused him to experience extreme itching (classed as a type of pain) and loss of appetite, resulting in weight loss.  The months leading up to his cancer diagnosis, before he was given a drain for his bile, were horrific as we tried to continue our life with him so exhausted and in so much pain. Alex was highly aware that research into PSC and other causes of liver disease is so desperately needed, and it was his utmost wish to help the British Liver Trust (which he always took an interest in and kept up-to-date with) in life and, especially, in his memory. 

Finally, I'd just like to bring to everyone's attention, if you haven't realised already, that Gift Aid isn't taken into account on the page totaliser.  For instance, Alex's gift of £3000 from his will was actually £3750 and all the other bits of gift aid from everyone adds up.  Thank you so much.

You may be interested to know that Alex also left gifts of equal amounts to two other charities; Wateraid and the Child'si Foundation.  

Wateraid help supply clean water and sanitation to people in desperate need all over the world, enabling children (especially girls) to go to school, empowering communities and saving lives from completely preventable diseases.  Clean water and sanitation is the first building block in escaping poverty, and Alex felt very strongly about this.  

The Child'si foundation is Blue Sky Fostering (Alex's workplace)'s very own charity, of which Alex was the chair of the fundraising committee.  Child'si help to find safe, healthy and loving foster homes for abandoned babies and children in Uganda, where previously there has not been a culture of fostering due to traditional views on the importance of blood-line.  Child'si are at the forefront of changing attitudes there, saving and caring for the most vulnerable children who desperately need homes.  Again, something Alex deeply cared about.  The £3000 he donated in his will pay for good social workers and rescue and home many abandoned children.  As a thank you for the gift Alex left in his will, Child'si named a rescued baby boy after Alex. Baby Alex is now adopted and thriving in a loving home.   

Many people will live, many girls will be educated, many women will be empowered, many children will find homes - all because of our amazing Alex. 

If you would like to make a small donation to Wateraid, you can do so here: https://www.wateraid.org/uk/donate/header/donate

If you would like to make a small donation to Child'si, you can send a cheque to this address: 

Caxton House, Packhams Hill, Rotherfield, East Sussex TN6 3HU

Many thanks to everyone who has donated and supported this fundraising endeavour so far - it really does mean the world.  Alex would be absolutely thrilled to see the amount raised so far, and so deeply touched to know that he was so loved.  We were very blessed to know so many amazing people.  

We need to keep this going, to support the project with the Royal College of GPs.  So, please do continue to support us in whatever ways you can, however small.  

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.