Help Russ and Kelly
Donation protected
To hear news that your friend has been taken unwell is always upsetting, but to hear that your friend has been taken unwell whilst travelling abroad is worse. You can’t run to their side to offer your love and support, you can’t turn up with grapes or cook them a hot meal. You can only try to let them know you are here for them by phone or text, while trying to not bombard them with ‘how are you today?’ messages.
Our friends Russ and Kelly are currently in Cyprus, on their one-year anniversary holiday, their first opportunity to spend time on their own as a couple since getting married. Only a few days into the trip Russ suffered a seizure, which at first the hospital told them was the result of sunstroke and sent them away. But after a second seizure that same afternoon, they knew it had to be something more serious. Returning to the hospital, they discovered that Russ had an unexplained bleed on the brain. He was rushed across the island to another hospital to see a specialist in neurology. This new hospital is an hour and a half drive away from their villa and due to Covid-restrictions Kelly can only visit him for 20 minutes a day.
After days of scans and tests and waiting for results, it was confirmed the Russ has a 5cm tumour deep in his brain. A tumour that will need to be removed before they can fly home. The operation could take up to 7 hours and will require at least 4 weeks recovery before they can even begin to think about how they will get home. Russ and Kelly do not speak the native language so all of this information is having to be explained by the amazing doctors in the best English they can.
For those of you who don’t know Russ and Kelly, I’ll give you a little background, which I hope will demonstrate what amazing people they are. Last year, whilst in the midst of planning their wedding they also made the brave and selfless decision to take over the care of Kelly’s beautiful niece and nephew, aged 2 and 5. They have given Casey and Chloe a warm loving home where they can feel safe and secure, supporting them through this huge change in their lives and the ups and downs that come with it. They are also providing support and guidance for Casey and Chloe’s half-sister Claire who is 19, offering themselves as the stable parental figures that she needs and ensuring that the siblings all remain part of each other’s lives. With Russ’s daughter Bethan already living at home, they became a family of 6 overnight, just days after getting married.
We are all adjusting to a new normal due to the worldwide pandemic, but for Russ and Kelly their new normal has just got more difficult than any of us could imagine. Separated from their children, who are being cared for at home by their grandmother, Russ and Kelly must now battle first an operation and recovery in a foreign country, before they can make the journey home to the U.K.
But getting home isn’t the end of the struggle. Russ faces a long recovery and as a self-employed plant engineer that means an extended period out of work, taking away the family’s only source of income - as Kelly was recently made redundant as a result of Covid-19.
We have put together this go fund me page in the hope that together we can raise a small amount of money to help Russ and Kelly get back on their feet and to support them by taking away the constant worry of how they will pay the bills while Kelly is out of work and Russ is recovering.
Russ and Kelly are two of the kindest, most generous and caring people you will ever meet. We are proud to count them amongst our closest friends. Any amount that you can donate would be fantastic and go a long way to reducing the burdens this beautiful family now face. We cannot thank you enough.
Our friends Russ and Kelly are currently in Cyprus, on their one-year anniversary holiday, their first opportunity to spend time on their own as a couple since getting married. Only a few days into the trip Russ suffered a seizure, which at first the hospital told them was the result of sunstroke and sent them away. But after a second seizure that same afternoon, they knew it had to be something more serious. Returning to the hospital, they discovered that Russ had an unexplained bleed on the brain. He was rushed across the island to another hospital to see a specialist in neurology. This new hospital is an hour and a half drive away from their villa and due to Covid-restrictions Kelly can only visit him for 20 minutes a day.
After days of scans and tests and waiting for results, it was confirmed the Russ has a 5cm tumour deep in his brain. A tumour that will need to be removed before they can fly home. The operation could take up to 7 hours and will require at least 4 weeks recovery before they can even begin to think about how they will get home. Russ and Kelly do not speak the native language so all of this information is having to be explained by the amazing doctors in the best English they can.
For those of you who don’t know Russ and Kelly, I’ll give you a little background, which I hope will demonstrate what amazing people they are. Last year, whilst in the midst of planning their wedding they also made the brave and selfless decision to take over the care of Kelly’s beautiful niece and nephew, aged 2 and 5. They have given Casey and Chloe a warm loving home where they can feel safe and secure, supporting them through this huge change in their lives and the ups and downs that come with it. They are also providing support and guidance for Casey and Chloe’s half-sister Claire who is 19, offering themselves as the stable parental figures that she needs and ensuring that the siblings all remain part of each other’s lives. With Russ’s daughter Bethan already living at home, they became a family of 6 overnight, just days after getting married.
We are all adjusting to a new normal due to the worldwide pandemic, but for Russ and Kelly their new normal has just got more difficult than any of us could imagine. Separated from their children, who are being cared for at home by their grandmother, Russ and Kelly must now battle first an operation and recovery in a foreign country, before they can make the journey home to the U.K.
But getting home isn’t the end of the struggle. Russ faces a long recovery and as a self-employed plant engineer that means an extended period out of work, taking away the family’s only source of income - as Kelly was recently made redundant as a result of Covid-19.
We have put together this go fund me page in the hope that together we can raise a small amount of money to help Russ and Kelly get back on their feet and to support them by taking away the constant worry of how they will pay the bills while Kelly is out of work and Russ is recovering.
Russ and Kelly are two of the kindest, most generous and caring people you will ever meet. We are proud to count them amongst our closest friends. Any amount that you can donate would be fantastic and go a long way to reducing the burdens this beautiful family now face. We cannot thank you enough.
Organizer and beneficiary
Siobhan Wright
Organizer
Kelly Lee
Beneficiary