Discover the care and support we offer
We provide Hospice care & support to patients and their loved ones living in Kent and East Sussex. Learn more about how we can help you.
He found this new Zane within himself
Mia adds, “I was worried because Zane was always so quiet. He seemed the most timid out of all the kids. He was the strongest of them all. He almost became, not cocky, but definitely cheekier. He found this new Zane within himself. It was so brilliant to see.”
When Zane became an inpatient at Hospice in the Weald, Mart felt a shift he hadn’t expected.
“Although it was an incredibly sad time, I felt a massive sense of relief because I knew he was going to be looked after. Especially within the first few days of us all being there, meeting all of the nurses, everyone took a shine to him. We could be his family, because we knew that everything else was looked after.”
The Hospice held every detail so they could hold Zane. “If he needed physio, if he needed pain relief, tablets, if he needed this or that. It was all there for us, and we could just spend time with him. The most precious thing we have. Just as parents, brothers, sisters – everyone could just come along and be there for him.”
Zane even celebrated his 19th birthday at the Hospice, surrounded by friends, family and, of course, Arlo.
Keeping Zane's memory alive and shining
Mia says, “To keep his memory alive and for us to give back a little, we’ve started by signing up to walk 13 miles at this year’s Moonlight Walk. My sister and her husband will be joining us and I’m sure there will be many others. It’ll be our own little Zane’s army. It’s important that we give back, as much as we can to a place we think of as a little bit of heaven on earth.”
“Everything we do. If we get a blister on our feet or feel tired, what is that compared to what Zane went through. He never moaned. In fact, I remember him saying ‘chemotherapy was quite easy, dad’, explains Mart. “So, if he can go through 16 rounds of chemo and 28 days of radiotherapy and an 11 hour surgery, I think we can walk 13 miles.”
Help families like Zane's at Moonlight Walk
If you’d like to remember someone special, celebrate a life, or simply walk in support of the care that holds families like Mart and Mia’s, you’re invited to join this year’s Moonlight Walk. It’s a chance to come together, share memories, and light up the night for the people who mean the most to us. Sign up now.