Always smiling, Holly Timbrell was a positive, glass half full type of girl who was determined to live her life to the full. She had a fantastic sense of humour and fun and her family fondly remember her infectious laugh and laughing together. City Hospice provided specialist palliative care to Holly towards the end of her life, as well as counselling for her mum Karen.
Described as an old soul, Holly was a homebird who loved creative pastimes such as baking, cross-stitch, embroidery and graphic design, as well as drinking cups of tea and spending time with her dog Pippin.
When she was 13 years old, Holly had a headache on a sunny bank holiday. Initially her family thought the headache could be the result of too much time in the sun and heat, but as it persisted throughout the week and Holly became sick, they sought medical attention. With Holly continuing to experience headaches and sickness following a GP appointment, she was quickly referred for a number of scans and was sadly diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Her mum Karen said: “The news was hard to process; I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. We are lucky that we have a close family so everyone started to rally around us and support each other.
“Holly had an incredible attitude and was so brave at each of her six operations, as well as her proton beam therapy in Florida. Always looking on the light side, she would be sharing a joke with the nurses and surgeons as she went into surgery. Despite her illness, she never let anything stop her: she completed her A-levels, travelled and worked a job she loved in the print and design department of a hospital.”
In the final 10 days of her life, Holly was referred to City Hospice who quickly arranged for a hospital bed at home and supported the family with Holly’s daily care needs.
Karen said: “City Hospice were great; they made everything as easy as possible for all of us and allowed us to spend meaningful, quality time with Holly. They listened to our needs sensitively and provided the right care for Holly and her circumstances.
“Although our time with City Hospice was brief, the support was immeasurable. After Holly’s death, I was able to access the counselling service provided by the charity. Speaking with my counsellor Sue weekly, I felt had a safe space where I could offload my emotions and just let everything out without my family and friends worrying about me.”
Karen and her family, who have previously supported City Hospice through Forever Flowers, murder mystery parties, triathlons and other creative fundraising ideas, will be remembering Holly in the lead up to Christmas as they support the charity’s Light up a Life appeal.
Karen said: “Everyone loves Christmas but Holly really, really loved Christmas and everything about the festive season. With her birthday not long after Christmas, it was always a special time for our family and we enjoyed making the most of celebrating her birthday and Christmas every year.
“The anniversary of her death, Christmas and birthday fall in the space of a fortnight and it can be a difficult period. We think of Holly every day but particularly at Christmas. The Light up a Life appeal seems like a particularly poignant time for me to share her story and support City Hospice at the same time.”
A donation made during the Light up a Life appeal will make a world of difference to a family facing terminal illness in the community. To donate, visit https://www.cityhospice.org.uk/star-in-the-sky/ or call 02920 524 150.
