It was two weeks ago that Mum sadly passed away. Mum was probably amongst the first few that were admitted to critical care for Covid-19. It was a strange and horrifying experience watching an international news story come crashing into our household.

Mum fought for 18 days but in the end went peacefully after Dad had one last opportunity to say goodbye. It's been difficult to understand such a painful and unexpected loss.

We have had some time to reflect on how Mum would want to be remembered and anyone who knew Mum knows she would want people to try and help others.

She dedicated the last 15 years of her life to foster caring. It's hard to explain how much my Mum and Dad have changed the lives of a number of foster children - from babies just a few days old to teenage refugees. The children have also changed us! We adopted one of these many children, Tyler, bringing him home from the hospital at two weeks old.

My Mum liked to say she won Tyler in a raffle and he was the best prize she could have hoped for - Tyler also likes regaling this particular tale.

With this in mind, it's clear Mum would want us to help those that helped her during her final weeks.

The staff at Queen’s Hospital were, in a word, fantastic. They are working under immense pressure. Now more than ever they need our help. Seeing first hand how the nurses cared for Mum with compassion in the face of such adversity was truly humbling. 

Anything you can offer to help other patients like Mum would mean the world to us. If times are hard, a share on social media would also be greatly appreciated. 

Thank you for taking the time.

The Deputy Family

Showquet, Asif, Mohammed, Shouab and Tyler