Bolton Hospice supporter, Chloe Hampson, is taking on the polar half marathon in Tromso in the Arctic Circle. She is running to raise money in memory of her mum.

"My mum, Tracey, died of an aggressive form of breast cancer and bone cancer.

The journey started with a phone call from my dad ringing me and telling me to pull over. My mum had been rushed into A&E by ambulance and was in a bad condition. I went straight to A&E where my mum was distraught and crying, "They can’t do anything... there's cancer all in my body." I was in shock. My mum was so fit and healthy. We couldn’t believe what was happening. 

She started chemotherapy at Christie's the next day, for 5 days. The chemo was painful but we hoped we could prolong mum's life.

After this, my mum was having trouble walking as the cancer had also spread to her leg. They replaced her bone in her leg, and everyone was doing everything they could so she could have a better quality of life before she was going to die. Sadly this didn't work and she ended up being bed bound.

My mum wanted to be at home but this was too difficult, as her pain was never under control, but we managed to get her a place in Bolton Hospice. Despite the pain, Mum always had a smile on her face and she was tough. She was very glamorous and during these times at the hospice we picked her funeral plans. Obviously (to anyone who knew my mum) she wanted 4 white horses and a silver carriage!! Mum always had expensive taste!

The hospice was a safe place. I could sit with my mum and even sleep there if I wanted to. There were many times where I hadn't eaten before I visited, but they always had sandwiches and biscuits and drinks for us there. They cared about my family as much as my mum.

Unfortunately, mum got worse and died a week later. 

The hospice's bereavement team told me I would likely be going through trauma after the death, rather than just grief. They helped us through the whole process to understand what was going to happen. They had a beautiful garden which was just a nice place to be at such a horrible time.

Bolton Hospice made my mum happy and helped her the best they could. Priceless really, no amount of money could pay for this. 

So I decided that I'm going to run a polar half  marathon in Tromso in the Arctic Circle. Running has helped me through my bad days, and I really want to raise money for the hospice to help them provide all the services they offer. Every single penny raised is a huge help, it all adds up."

You can donate to Chloe's JustGiving page here.