A Mum-of-two from Swansea is dedicating her race for life to the dad she lost suddenly to cancer just a year ago.
Julie Lewis will join hundreds of others in the Race for Life at Swansea’s Museum Green in July, one of a series of national events up and down the UK to raise awareness and funds for fighting the killer disease.
And for Julie the race is special because it takes place almost a year to the day that her dad, former pub landlord Malcolm Jones, died.
Julie, 41, from Birchgrove, who has worked for Dorothy Perkins in the Quadrant Centre, Swansea, for almost 25 years, will be joined at the 5k race, on July 24, by her sister Nicola Davies and several friends. A keen cyclist who enjoys keep fit classes, this will be the first time Julie has taken part in a running event.
She said: “I have thought about how I will feel on the day and I think I will be fine during the event itself because there will be a lot going on but we are going afterwards for something to eat and a few drinks and I think it will hit me then. There will be a few tears.
“One thing’s for sure I will be having a little think about my dad on the way round and how much we all miss him.”
Her father, who was 67 when he died, was diagnosed with the disease at the end of June last year and passed away only a few weeks later on August 9.
Julie said she had been concerned about her father’s health prior to his diagnosis but ‘being a man’ he had decided not to go to the doctors.
Julie said: “I noticed his voice was croaky but he would always say that he was just getting over a cold and at one stage he lost a lot of weight but being a typical man he wouldn’t go to the doctors.
“He would have had to have had a leg hanging off before he would have even considered it!”
It was only after Malcolm later collapsed that tests revealed he had throat cancer and it was too advanced for treatment.
She described her much loved dad, who lived in Brynhyfryd all of his life and ran the Morris Arms in the village with his wife Diane for 10 years. Julie said: “He had a lovely personality and the older he got, the more laid back he and his sense of humour became.
“He was a massive Manchester United fan and he loved going to car boot sales. He was building up a collection of little, model cars before he died.”
She added: “The other thing I will always remember about him is that he was always doing a crossword or some sort of puzzle. He always had one of those on the go.”
Julie, who is mum to Cameron, 10, and Joshua, seven, recalled the days leading up to losing her dad.
She said: “I used to go and see my dad every Tuesday or Thursday. He wasn’t always feeling up to doing much so we would just sit and watch Homes Under The Hammer or something like that.”
The week before her dad passed away, Julie went to see him as usual on the Tuesday and was due to take her boys with her later in the week but her dad was feeling poorly so she didn’t go.
Julie said: “He passed away before I had the chance to see him again and you have all these guilty feelings going round, oh why did I not go and see him.
“My sister and I went round to his house just after he had died and I went into the room where he was and I had a little chat with him.”
The Race for Life event will have very special meaning to Julie and she is determined to raise as much money as she can and perhaps more importantly to her, raise awareness about the disease.
She said: “I sometimes think about had my dad not been so stubborn and got himself to a doctor whether things would have been different for him and by telling people about my dad, maybe it will make others think too.”
Julie has already raised close to £200 but she is keen to hit her target of £500. You can support her by pledging sponsorship at the Dorothy Perkins store in the Quadrant Centre or by going to www.raceforlifesponsorme.org/julielewis1502
