We were told that David had a type of cancer called Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma and they operated on him straight away, followed by vigorous chemotherapy. At this point, we were just in shock, like rabbits in headlights. We were taking it in turns to be at the hospital whilst looking after David’s older sister, Katy.
Graham's story
David’s bravery
A week before David’s 6th birthday, his parents Graham and Lesley took him to a routine doctor’s appointment for what they assumed to be constipation. The diagnosis, however, turned their world upside down.
The family celebrated David’s birthday around his hospital bed, with the entire ward making it as special as possible with presents, decorations and sweets. So much so, that David claimed it to the “best birthday ever”. The treatment started to work and just after Christmas, David went into remission. Sadly, the family’s relief didn’t last long.
Unfortunately, the cancer came back just a month later and we knew it was serious. He then had a stem cell transplant and radiotherapy followed by a month of isolation. Just one week later they found another lump and explained to us that there’s nothing else they could do.
David passed away a few weeks later and the family were devastated.
We want people to know how brave David was. He took the treatment in his stride, always bouncing back and trying to make people laugh. He was always winding up the nurses; I remember one time he had a fake mouse in his bed and caused havoc. But he always got away with it because he had the cheekiest smile.
Every time a kid went through a procedure they were given a toy or treat from the fairy box which at first, David enjoyed but then one day, he had all of us, including the nurses, in tears by saying – I don’t want a toy I just want to be well. That was the one thing none of us could make happen, I would have loved to have swapped places with him.
Financial Support
Up until that point, we’d been prioritising time with David, not our finances. We’d used up all of our savings from taking time off work and we were worried about how we would pay for his funeral. It’s normal to put money aside for an adult’s funeral, but not for a child.
Graham was already a regular donor to the Charity for Civil Servants. Now it was his time to ask for help, he was reminded that he has a lifelong community of people behind him every step of the way.
I started donating a long time before we needed help ourselves. I heard the stories of how the Charity had helped people and thought – how could I not? For the sake of just a few pounds a month. When you’re part of a community like the Civil Service, it’s important to help others. I just didn’t know it would ever be me asking for help.
Graham got in touch, and we listened. We found that we could pay towards David’s funeral, immediately relieving some of the weight off Graham and Lesley’s shoulders, allowing them space to grieve.
When we didn’t know who to turn to, the Charity was our life raft. We grabbed onto it when we felt like we didn’t have anything to hold onto. It gave us the answer to a question when we didn’t have the answer ourselves… and it was so important to have that support at that time.
Graham wants to share David’s story in the hope of helping others in need. He hopes David’s courage will help others find courage of their own.
He was incredibly loved by his family, his friends, all his Boys Brigade friends, Sunday school and everyone on our supporters’ bus for football games, which is now called the David Reid True Blues after him. I could talk about David all day every day and am so proud to have had a son like him.
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