A young woman died before she could marry the “love of her life” – and passed away on what would have been her wedding day.
Chloe Askey, 21, had planned to tie the knot with partner Hakeem on April 12 after she was diagnosed with cancer in October.
The couple scheduled the date after her condition worsened so they would be wed before she became too ill.
But Chloe sadly died on Monday – the day she and Hakeem had hoped to marry, reports Examiner Live.
The would-be groom’s mother Kerry Patel announced the news in a post on an online fundraiser.
She said: “Two days after her birthday she started chemo which was a really hard time for Chloe but her soulmate and love of her life Hakeem was there by her side to help her through.
“Because of the horrid Covid Chloe was not able to really do much in-between chemo sessions, Chloe got very poorly after an operation she had only 6 weeks-ish ago then on Friday we were told that she was allowed home but she was still very poorly and may not have long, none of us ever thought it would only be 3 days.
“Chloe and Hakeem were planning on getting married today but Chloe’s poorly body just couldn’t hold on long enough.”
An animal lover, Chloe had worked at Thornberry Animal Sanctuary in Anston, Sheffield for two years as part of the cattery team.
General manager of the sanctuary, Helen Connelly, said that Chloe’s loss had been devastating for her colleagues.
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She said: “She’s a massive loss to the team, we’re quite a small team and we kind of feel like we’ve lost a member of our family, it’s really sad.
“She was very caring, she cared about the animals and took delight in trying to find them the perfect home.
“She had a real relationship with our resident cat Tiger and used to write Tiger’s diary on our social media page so, for me, when I look at the cat I’ll always think of Chloe because she used to make his voice come alive and he’ll miss her presence more than anybody.”
Chloe had been responsible for the rehoming of cats at the sanctuary, though Helen said that she aspired to make a career out of working with big cats in the wild.
“She was a really happy girl and really interested in all types of animals but did have a penchant for the cats”, Helen said.
“She went out to Africa with college and did a lot of work with the big cats out there, so longer term I think that’s where she wanted her career to go, not just with the domestic cats but with the big animals as well.
“She actually studied animal care and management at college and was doing a further degree in animal welfare so she wanted a long-term career in animal welfare.”
The animal sanctuary is currently in the process of raising funds to expand its cattery and Helen has said that, when that is complete, they will find a way to “mark her life” somewhere in the new building.
Helen said: “We’re just shell-shocked, to lose a life at 21 is just heartbreaking…she had her whole future ahead of her. It’s just been quite unbelievable the last six months really and then to lose her so quickly.
“I spoke to her a few days before she passed away and she was saying that she didn’t have long to live and then for her to go so soon is just really really sad.”
In a touching tribute to the “beautiful” young woman on the sanctuary’s Facebook page, hundreds of people paid tribute and sent their condolences to Chloe’s family, friends and colleagues.
If you would like to donate to the fundraiser in her memory, you can do so here.