There is nothing more devastating for a parent than the loss of a child, whether by accident or disease.
The grief never ends and people facing such a loss often join support groups or take on charity support projects to help cope.
For Uki man Alan Lowe, his therapy was to write a book. Money raised from sales goes to various support groups for cancer sufferers, including Camp Quality.
Deal the Cards, a self-published collection of anecdotes, sometimes sad and more often funny, is now on sale at the Commonwealth Bank in Murwillumbah or through the website www.dealthecards.com.au
Alan’s beloved daughter Katie passed away in May last year at the age of 27, after a year of battling cancer. She was married to her childhood sweetheart Simon Bain.
Before her death, Katie was a tireless worker for charities. She was a volunteer at Camp Quality for three years before her diagnosis and the camp named a charity golf day in her honour.
The event started in Ballina but was later transferred to Murwillumbah Golf Club. So far, it has raised more than $33,000 for Camp Quality.
Alan said he wrote the book partly as therapy but also for people with cancer.
“I hope it will help to entertain people waiting in oncology wards in hospital,” he said. “I started it when Katie got sick and when she passed I had to finish it.
“It is my way of loving Katie and keeping her memory alive.”
The introduction to the book, My Inspiration, outlines the Lowe family’s journey after Katie’s diagnosis. It is an apt title, inspiring not only the author but also the readers.
What follows is a collection of the author’s and his acquaintances’ experiences, the odd joke or two and some musings on life and the beyond.
Haphazard it may be but straight from the heart.
Alan believes his daughter is somewhere guiding distribution of Deal the Cards.
“When someone needs to read it, they will read it,” he said. “It is its own entity and has a life of its own.”