By Leicester Mercury | Posted: 03 September, 2015
"I was devastated when Keith was diagnosed with cancer, absolutely devastated. It felt like my whole world had just vanished," said Beverley, 58, of Narborough Road, Leicester.
On Valentine's Day this year, 76-year-old Keith asked Beverley to marry him.
"He got his daughter to get me a card and inside he wrote, 'I love you forever and if you love me, then turn over' and he'd put 'will you marry me?'
"So we had special permission and we got married on April 23, St George's Day. It was the best day of my life."
The day after the couple wed, great-grandfather Keith was taken to LOROS.
"The morning of our wedding, Keith woke up and he said to me, 'I'm dying,' and I told him, 'not today Keith, we've got a wedding to sort out.'
"But that night we decided to ring LOROS."
Keith had initially said he wanted to die at home but, after relaxing in one of the "comfy" chairs at LOROS, he told Beverley he was happy to stay at the hospice.
"His daughters said to me, look how relaxed he is," said Beverley.
"It was the first time that I had seen Keith so relaxed in the months he had been poorly. And it was just LOROS."
Beverley had nothing but praise for how LOROS treated Keith, who died in June.
"It is the best, the best care," she said.
"At home, I couldn't have given him the care he got there, however much I tried.
"The staff, everybody, they just couldn't do enough – and not just for Keith, but for me too.
"It's like a five-star hotel and he was really looked after."
When Keith was at the hospice, Beverley was able to stay with him, along with their pet dog, Bubbles.
"We were able to bring the dog in and that meant the world, because if I could stay and the dog could stay, Keith was happy, he was contented," said Beverley.
"At LOROS I could be a wife to Keith, just holding his hand and being there for him, watching him sleep.
"I just wanted him to be pain-free and comfortable and he was."
To help LOROS continue supporting people like Keith, visit: loros.co.uk/support-us
To help give Loros a 30th birthday to remember, text 'CARE24 30' to 70070 to give £30.
Alternatively, visit: loros.co.uk/30for30
