Help the Elleston family

We’re posting this on behalf of our friend, and work colleague Stephen Elleston and his family. It’s fair to say life throws us all challenges at times, but they’ve had more than their fair share recently.

Stephen and wife Angela live in Spalding with their four children: Connor (27), Tiffany (23), Stephen Jnr (21), and Oliver (13). By their own admission, they were just like any other normal family.

But over the past nine months, their lives have been turned upside down. On 10th August 2023, just three weeks before Angela was due to have a mastectomy, following months of gruelling cancer treatment, two of her sons were involved in a horrific accident in Egypt, leaving one in a coma.

Their trauma started just days before Christmas 2022 when Angela received the news she didn’t want; the news she had breast cancer. After months of tests, and agonising over finding out if the cancer had spread, Angela started a course of chemotherapy in April. Like many other women who have been through a similar journey, living with the side effects of the treatment that was supposed to be making her feel better, became intolerable at times. But, with the support of Stephen and her children, she continued the battle.

However, after 12 weeks of treatment, Angela received the devasting news that she’d need to have a mastectomy. A date was set and she'd have the surgery on 4th September 2023. By this stage, the whole family believed life couldn't get any worse.

How wrong they were.

Back in June, as she was nearing the end of her chemotherapy, Angela's focus became being well enough to attend eldest son Connor's graduation from the University of Leeds, where he achieved a First Class Honours Degree in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies. It was special day for Angela and Stephen. They were tremendously proud parents and it allowed them to put their other woes to one side for the day.

Following his dream, Connor decided to live abroad, briefly living in Egypt, to work in the region.

In August, younger brother Stephen Jnr decided to take a holiday and visit Connor for a couple of weeks. On the first day, disaster struck. The two brothers were hit by a speeding car whilst walking back to a hotel one afternoon. The consequences were devastating. Both boys were taken to hospital. Connor was released after a couple of days, with a broken wrist and damaged left side. Younger brother, Stephen Jnr, still remains in a coma.

Receiving this news was a parent's worst nightmare for Stephen Snr and Angela. Just over three weeks before the mastectomy and they now had two sons in a hospital, 2,500 miles away. They were faced with no choice other than to get on a plane and go out there.

No parent can prepare themselves for seeing a child in a coma. After a week, there was very little change in Stephen's situation. The focus became getting him back to a British hospital. After days of being told there wasn't a single intensive care bed available in the UK, finally, the news arrived that one had been found in Peterborough and on 23rd August he was medically evacuated back to the UK.

It's too early to say what the prognosis will be for Stephen Jnr. In the short term, every blink of an eyelid or twitch of a finger gives some hope he will pull through and make a full recovery. But, what is known is that it's going to be a long journey ahead for the whole family.

Next week, as well as having Stephen Jnr in hospital in Peterborough, mum Angela will be having her mastectomy at Boston Hospital.

Fortunately, Stephen Jnr had taken out travel insurance. But, the insurance doesn't cover the cost Stephen (Snr) and Angela had to incur in getting flights out to Egypt at short notice, their accommodation and living costs over there for over a week, let alone all the expenses to come.

Unfortunately, Angela had to give up work quite early into her treatment. Finances have been very tight since, putting extra pressure on the family during what was already a difficult time.

Life is going to become even harder over the forthcoming weeks and months as Stephen Jnr is likely to remain in hospital and Angela rehabilitates from her mastectomy.

Therefore, we'd like to ask your help to give a little to help the Elleston family during this difficult time. Money cannot change this tragic position they find themselves in, but it can take away some of the worry and allow them to focus on what matters most, in caring for each other.

We know how much this will mean for their whole family.