Story
Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. This is the second year I've run the Bupa Manchester 10k, and this year in in memory of Martine Hamer, the late wife of Russell Hamer - one of my mates from Burnley who's been cutting my hair for over a decade. Burnley is a relatively small place, and a lot of folks knew Martine for her energy, smile and enthusiasm. I personally knew her as the mixer of bleach, the operator of hair dryers and the giver of an occasional spray tan :) She was taken from us way too soon and I miss seeing her in the salon :(
I ran for the Pendleside Hospice this year because, in her final months, they really made a difference both for Martine and for her family. I want to help continue the good work that they do and pay tribute to one of my mates at the same time. Please give what you can; whether it's pounds or pence, your donations will be greatly appreciated. Thank you :)
Featured below is a tribute from the Burnley Express. Her obituary can be found at http://announce.jpress.co.uk/3586938
Hairdresser And Mum (35) Loses Cancer Battle
http://www.burnleyexpress.net/burnleynews/Hairdresser-and-mum-40354-loses.6087746.jp
Cards, donations and messages of condolence have flooded in from hundreds of well wishers whose lives were touched by the mother-of-two with the infectious smile.
Martine died on Monday surrounded by her family, 10 months after she was diagnosed with cancer.
Russell (45) said: "She was such a wonderful person. She was my wife, my best friend and my soul mate and it is so hard to come to terms with losing that all at once. She was so popular and everyone in town knew her. She loved everything about life. She made me the person I am today."
Martine (nee Scott) grew up in Berry Street, Healey Wood, and went to Towneley High School. She trained as a hairdresser at Nelson and Colne College, before starting work experience at Russell's Hair Salon in Manchester Road aged 17.
A year later the pair got together and worked together at the salon for more than 18 years – until a few months before she died.
"She was at the forefront of her profession. She just loved her job and when the day came when she couldn't work any more it was heartbreaking. She was devastated.
"There are a lot of kinds of breast cancer but hers was the most deadly. She was diagnosed with metastatic carcinoma of the breast in March last year. Two months later and she was told it was terminal. She was absolutely devastated."
She was given an intense course of chemotherapy to treat the tumour and fought tooth and nail to secure ground-breaking cancer drugs Herceptin and Lapatinib which only a few people in the UK have been given access to.
"She called the cancer Sarah because she thought cancer was the worst word in the world. That's how she dealt with it."
Despite the advanced treatments, her cancer spread and she died in Pendleside Hospice on Monday.
Russell said family, friends and customers were devastated and he wanted to remember her as a woman who lived her life to the full.
He said she was a party animal, keen horse-rider, keep-fit fanatic and a charity fund-raiser, but above all was devoted to her family and children Kayla Jade (20) and Harvey Scott (6).
"She was so passionate about her family. Our house was just always full of love and laughter. She was the most fantastic wife anybody could ever wish for and the best mother you could ever want for your children."
When she first found out she had cancer, the family received more than 300 cards from customers and since her death the weight of support from well-wishers has been overwhelming.
He said he wanted to thank all the people who had shown the family support throughout the last year, and praised the work of Pendleside Hospice. "The hospice have been angels to us. All the doctors and nurses and staff there have fed us and let us stay there. They have been wonderful."
The funeral will be held at St Matthew's Church at 1 p.m. on Wednesday and the family want it to be a celebration of Martine's life. Donations instead of flowers should be made to Pendleside Hospice.