The Saturdays singer and Radio 1 presenter Mollie King has been showered with support after she took to Instagram to post a heartfelt tribute to her late dad in support of Brain Tumour Awareness month and to help raise money with her sister Laura, who is running the London Marathon next month in aid of The Brain Tumour Charity.
The mother-of-one, who welcomed daughter Annabella with fiance and cricketer Stuart Broad just days after her father's devastating death in November, posted a picture of her with her father, Stephen, and opened up about the "horrible disease" and his life before he was diagnosed so suddenly, just hours after she had been out walking her dog, Alfie, with him.
She wrote: "This month is Brain Tumour Awareness month. I’ve always tried not to let myself think about losing someone I love, it’s too hard to think about, but last year this fear became a reality. In August my wonderful Dad was diagnosed with a brain tumour and we had to say goodbye to him just 3 months later. It’s still very hard to write about, I’ve been putting off writing this post because it’s easier to push it to the back of my mind and try to keep as busy as possible to cover up the heartache.
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"Dad was the best Dad you could ask for. So caring, funny, honest and the best Grandpa to the little ones in our family. I know how much he would have adored Annabella and am so thankful that he got to hold her. I think of him every single day and talk to Annabella about him when we’re winding down in the evening. For anyone who has lost someone, you might agree that the nights are the hardest, and talking about him in the past tense is something I hate doing."
She then detailed the morning "that everything changed" and his lifestyle that made his diagnosis so inconceivable.
"Dad’s life was cut short and his diagnosis came completely out of the blue - he was out walking Alfie with me the morning that everything changed. Dad was incredibly active, he ran 3 marathons and walked in Richmond Park almost every day. He had so much life left to live.
"My family have been utterly heartbroken by what this horrible disease did to Dad and want to do all we can to raise awareness and funds for @thebraintumourcharity, who work to help everyone affected by a brain tumour or brain cancer."
She added how her sister, Laura, is running the London Marathon in April to raise money for the charity and encouraged her followers to donate - "however big or small" - stating how their father would have been "so incredibly proud".
She concluded the post by saying: "Our lives will never be the same after losing our beloved Dad and our love and thoughts go out to anyone whose life has also been touched by cancer."
Celebrity friends and fans of the BBC Radio 1 presenter flooded her comments with messages of love and support, including former bandmates, Una Healy, who wrote: "So beautifully written Mollie, sending you and all of your family so much love".
Television presenter Nicki Chapman added: "I’m so sorry for your loss Mollie. This fantastic charity helped me enormously after my brain tumour surgery and, as you say, do the most incredible work & research into finding a cure and also offering support to anyone going through something similar. Sending love to you and the family."
Many also took to her comments to share their own experiences of the disease and to thank Mollie for raising awareness.
One supporter wrote: "This is us right now, living this with my amazing mum. A diagnosis out of the blue and she’s fighting it so hard. Thank you for raising awareness xx"
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