Guts UK supporter, Victoria, plants first flower in our brand new Memory Garden

We’re thrilled to launch our online Memory Garden and invite you to create a tribute in memory of your loved one in support of Guts UK, the national charity for the digestive system.

The Memory Garden is a special place to remember and honour those we love. With each tribute created, a flower will blossom in the Memory Garden bearing your loved one’s name.

Each flower links to a personal plot where family and friends can share messages, memories, and reflections.

You can revisit the Memory Garden at any time to add new messages or mark special occasions. New donations made in your loved one’s memory help the flowers continue to grow and bloom as a lasting tribute.

Guts UK supporter, Victoria, has planted a flower in the Memory Garden in tribute to her late fiancée, Keith, who sadly died of acute pancreatitis on 7 April 2022, aged just 46. Victoria candidly shares her story below to raise vital awareness of the devastation of pancreatitis.

Victoria’s heartfelt tribute message reads:

“Keith,

Living my life without you is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. Although the grief is painful, my love for you continues to grow. It’s an infinite thing, and I honour you in everything that I do and every way that I can.

You were the most amazing man, and still now I can’t believe that you’re gone. I’m so thankful to have known and to have loved you, and I ache for the day that we can meet again. Until then, my love, I’ll continue to try to live in the best way that I can.

I love you now, and I love you always – thank you for loving me.

All of my love, Victoria”

Victoria’s in-memory story

“We first met whilst working for the NHS in February 2009 and kissed at that year’s Christmas party. Keith asked me on a date, but I declined, although we stayed in touch over the years. 10 years later, in December 2019, we had our first date. As things progressed, we both sold our own homes and moved in together. We loved walking and cooking together, and in the evenings, we’d listen to music and chat all night. Keith proposed to me on Christmas Day in 2021, whilst we waited for our first home together to complete. Everything was falling into place, and we began trying to start a family.

In March 2022, just days away from moving into our new home, Keith became unwell and was admitted to hospital. Despite this, he was incredibly excited for what our future would bring. He even tried to sign the completion paperwork for our home whilst in hospital.

Keith’s symptoms started in the middle of the night; he experienced excruciating abdominal pain, and I found him pacing backwards and forwards in the spare room, doubled over in pain and sweating. Keith assured me these were symptoms of his irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), something he’d been diagnosed with years before. I wanted to phone an ambulance, but Keith didn’t. We tried heat packs and cold packs, and his pain eventually subsided.

The next day, Keith was unable to get a GP appointment, however after over-hearing me talk about the severity of the pain, the receptionist spoke to a GP. They told us that if the pain reoccurred, to phone for an ambulance immediately.

This became a reality when Keith’s pain returned an hour later. Despite the ambulance crew’s initial hesitation, I urged them to take him to hospital, and they gave him morphine for his pain.

After being admitted to hospital, Keith was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis following blood tests and scans, and the news that he’d possibly need emergency surgery to remove his gallbladder after an ultrasound confirmed gallstones. Another scan confirmed there were no gallstones blocking the duct that drains the pancreas.

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, I was only allowed to visit Keith for an hour each day and it was difficult to find anyone to talk to. I felt helpless.

Terrified but hopeful, we were convinced Keith was in the right place. Even when he was in the intensive care unit (ICU), doctors reaffirmed he was young, fit and healthy, and was likely to recover. We had no idea that there was no treatment for acute pancreatitis, or how important the pancreas is. Desperate to see him, I’d count down the hours until I could visit him again, frustrated with the limitations.

As his condition worsened, Keith found it increasingly difficult to communicate and eventually had a tracheotomy (an opening in the neck into the windpipe) to help him breathe. Even then, he summoned the energy to write me a note telling me he loved me. I was exhausted and incredibly worried but always tried to remain upbeat for him and others.

Keith went from being able to walk to the hospital shop, to being given oxygen to help him breathe.

The next seven days were a rollercoaster. Anyone who’s been with a loved one in ICU will know that you don’t sleep or eat. You wait by the phone and the bed, and you pray that they pull through. Numerous times, I was told that Keith might not make it. I spent nights begging him to just stay with me. Keith rallied so many times, and I remember a consultant saying to me “we’ve got him, we’ve got him back.”

Keith died on 7 April 2022, just two weeks after being admitted to hospital. He fought so hard to stay with us, but his body had gone through so much and couldn’t cope anymore.”

Plant a flower in the Guts UK Memory Garden