A WOMAN from Bramley is encouraging others to join in as she prepares for a charity walk in memory of her beloved mum who sadly died from cancer this year. 

Nicky Burns, 48, is taking part in the Sue Ryder Starlight Hike Thames Valley next month in memory of her much-loved mum, Diane, alongside a group of five friends who will all be wearing bright pink. They have named their team ‘Diane’s Divas'. 

Together they hope to raise as much money as they can to help the end-of-life care and bereavement support provided by Sue Ryder.

By Nicky sharing her story she hopes to encourage other people to also join her to celebrate the lives of loved ones who have died and raise vital funds for the charity.

The Starlight Hike is taking place on what would have been Nicky's mums 68th birthday on Saturday, October 22.

She said: "It is the first birthday without her, so I wanted to do this to celebrate her life and pay tribute to her bravery and courage, whilst raising funds for a cause I know for certain she would have wanted me to support.”

Nicky's mum Diane sadly died in February after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January 2020.

She initially responded well to chemotherapy but the side effects made her very weak and dizzy, and she had a few falls, one which resulted in her needing a total hip replacement.

Diane had been supported by the occupational therapy team from Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice in Reading and after her surgery she was offered the opportunity to spend a few weeks there for rehabilitation.

The staff there helped bring Diane's strength back up and helped her to learn to walk on her new hip, doing physio every day and generally having a laugh with her. 

Diane was discharged from the hospice but sadly a few months later it was found that her cancer had started to regrow and her health deteriorated rapidly over the following months, eventually reaching a stage where she was too unwell to have any more treatment.

Nicky explained that the Sue Ryder Nurses made sure that her mum was comfortable and could spend her last few days at home with her beloved dogs, Poppy and Millie. Until February 13 where Diane peacefully died with her daughter Nicky at her side, holding her hand.

Hundreds of people are expected to join the special starlit walk supporting Sue Ryder, which follows a 5k route around the grounds of Pangbourne College.

Nicky added: "I’m an only child and sadly my dad was killed in a car accident when I was nine, so most of my life it’s just been me and mum and we were very close. I hope that I’ll be able to look up into the sky that evening and hopefully see a star twinkling back at me, which is what my mum was to me - the brightest star in the sky, always there looking down on me.”

The registration for the Sue Ryder Starlight Hike Thames Valley, sponsored by Azego, begins at 6.30pm with pre-walk entertainment followed by a warm-up. At 8pm walkers sporting fancy dress, flashing headwear and neon face paint will set out on a lit 5k route with live music along the way.

Tickets are £15 for adults and £6 for children aged 6-12. Group and family team ticket options are also available.

Sign up for the hike sueryder.org/thamesvalleystarlight.    

To donate to Nicky’s JustGiving page: justgiving.com/fundraising/Nicky-Burns6