The children of a lifelong Aston Villa fan were treated to match side tickets thanks to Isabel Hospice after we helped care for their dad before he died from a rare form of facial cancer.
We arranged the special day out for Izzy and Rupert Cartwright after caring for the family during their dad Simon’s illness. Simon was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the sinus in 2018 and was under the care of the Hospice, with Isabel’s clinical team supporting him both at home where the family live in Sawbridgeworth and during several stays at the In-Patient Unit in the latter stages of his illness. You can read more of Simon’s story in his own words here.
While caring for Simon, his wife Sarah and their children, our Hospice team came to know the family really well and knew Simon was a huge Aston Villa fan. After he died just before Christmas 2022, staff wanted to do something special for the family following their loss and contacted the football club for help.
Sarah said: “When I got the call from [Isabel Clinical Nurse Specialist] Ria to say that we’d been offered tickets, I instantly changed our plans for the day to make sure that we could go. It was an opportunity not to be missed! Simon’s brother, Will, came with us and we all met outside the stadium buzzing with excitement. Just the fact that we were there was more than enough for us – we did not expect to have pitch side seats right by the tunnel!”
She continued: “The children couldn’t believe how close they were to the pitch and seeing their little faces when the players came out of the tunnel was wonderful. It was a great game with some excitement, especially when an opposition player got sent off. Rupert couldn’t believe he’d seen someone get a red card in real life! The Villa win was the icing on the cake. We smiled all day and felt incredibly lucky to be there.
“Simon adored Aston Villa and as a family we spent many hours watching them on the TV, only ever making it to a handful of games at Villa Park. Doing things like this makes us feel close to him, and carrying on with the things we did as a family helps to keep his memory alive.
“This is just one example of Isabel Hospice going way above and beyond for us. Simon passed away four months ago and we continue to be supported by them in so many ways. Thank you Isabel Hospice for arranging this for us, and thank you Aston Villa for giving us this opportunity. Up The Villa!”
