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Four years ago, freemason Mark received a call that would change his family life forever.

His wife, Jacqui, had been on her way home from work when she was involved in a serious car accident that left her with permanent brain injuries. She was 44-years-old.

Now, Mark and his two daughters, Ella, 15, and Grace, 13, spend time with Jacqui in a specialist ward that cares for residents with serious brain injuries and illnesses. As these additional hospital visits became a part of daily life, the family’s finances became strained, and Mark turned to the MCF for support. We have helped Mark and the girls with their transport costs so they can continue to spend quality time with Jacqui without worrying about the cost of getting there and back.

We visit Jacqui…

…every weekend, without fail. If the girls are on school holidays and I’m at work, they will visit Jacqui with their grandparents every day whilst they’re off.

At the weekend…

…Ella, Grace and I get up and have a nice breakfast together before getting ready to go and visit Jacqui. We try to be out of the house by 10:30am as it can take around 40 minutes to get to the hospital where Jacqui now lives, but thankfully the support from the MCF means I’m less worried about the petrol costs of visiting her.

Once we arrive…

…we buzz ourselves into the hospital – we visit so often, we have our own passes! Jacqui’s ward is on the first floor, which is where the social areas are. There are always carers and staff members milling about, so we say hello to everyone before we go to Jacqui’s room.

Because of Jacqui’s brain injury…

…she has to have her breakfast after the other patients; her brain doesn’t register that she’s not hungry anymore, and she’ll want to have other people’s food. She’s normally still eating when we arrive, so we wait for her to finish then shower her with hugs and kisses. She’s always chuffed to see us.

Depending on Jacqui’s mood…

…we’ll either stay in, play board games, and the girls will pamper her, or we go out into town. Jacqui loves to shop for the girls and pick out crazy outfits for them to try on, which Ella and Grace are more than happy to do! We’ll stop to have some food and usually a slice of carrot cake, but I’ve always got to be really aware as to where the disabled bathrooms are so we can get there quickly if needs be – that’s always on my radar.

At around 4pm…

…we will take Jacqui back to the hospital. She’s in a routine that works for her, so we try and make sure that everything we do sticks to this schedule. It’s good for her to have a structure but it’s also good for mine and the girls’ wellbeing.

Jacqui’s accident has completely changed our lives, so having a routine and discipline within your mind helps you to function day to day.

The girls feel different emotions each week when we drop Jacqui off; sometimes they feel sad and sometimes they feel okay. It’s heart breaking to leave Jacqui each time, but it is what it is. Her personality has totally changed and she’s not the Jacqui she used to be. She’s in the best place to meet her needs and it’s just a relief that we can still spend time with her each week.