Tributes have been paid to a former police officer who died in the arms of her husband when she suddenly fell in on holiday. Julie-Anne Forkasiewicz was 53.
From Clitheroe in Lancashire, she fell ill while on holiday with her husband Peter Forkasiewicz in Cumbria. Julie had type two diabetes which had an impact on her health and she was progressively getting more poorly over the last five years, according to her family. However, the cause of her death has yet to be determined, LancsLive reported.
Paying tribute, Peter described his wife of 29 years, who attended Mount Carmel Roman Catholic High School in Accrington and who lived on Omerod Street when she was growing up in the town, as a very friendly and genuine person who had the ability to make friends quickly.
READ MORE: Defiant Boris Johnson finally announces resignation as Prime Minister as he addresses the nation
He said: “She’d be the first to break the ice in a room full of people and she had such an infectious smile and a great sense of humour There was nothing she wouldn’t do for me and it was never too much trouble.”
The holiday had been planned three weeks prior and Julie was healthy enough to travel but when the family arrived at the hotel she said she did not feel well and decided to have a nap while Peter, Julie’s father Trevor and Julie’s sister Gillian went out for a meal. Peter wanted to check how Julie was and returned to their hotel room where he found her lying down on a settee drained of energy.
The couple watched the Glastonbury festival on television until they both fell asleep and around 2.30am she woke Peter and told him she felt really hot but her body was cold. She began to 'burn up' and her breathing became more shallow so Peter rang an ambulance and he performed 15 minutes of CPR.
An ambulance arrived at 4.30am but by 5.20am she was pronounced dead. Julie was employed as a barmaid at The Warners Arms pub on Warner Street, worked in a petrol station and made components for cars in a factory before joining the police, mainly serving on firearms unit for the Ministry of Defence.
She was awarded with top marks for the 300 metre range target practice during her police training. In 2012 she retired from her policing duties, which were based in Chorley and near Harrogate, and took pleasure in visiting family and friends.
Peter and his wife enjoyed several trips abroad together including a cruise to Los Angeles where they toured up to San Fransico and a cruise to the Gulf of Mexico. The couple, from Clitheroe, enjoyed shopping trips in Carlisle, long walks together and also went mountain biking in different parts of the country including Cumbria, Wales and Northumberland.
Julie was known as a great cook and loved traditional wholesome foods, her favourite being steak and sweet potato. The keen gym goer was a member of Mercure Blackburn Dunkenhalgh Hotel and Spa where she liked to relax and workout and swim.
She spent a lot of time at home in Waddington, Clitheroe, with her husband and enjoyed watching old soap programmes such as Coronation Street. She was a great friend to many people in Accrington who would stop her in the street to say hello, say her family, and will be dearly missed by them, her husband and her father Trevor, brother Mark and sisters Gillian, Rachel and Jennifer.
Her funeral will be held on Tuesday, July 12 at St Huberts Church, Great Harwood followed by burial at Accrington Cemetery.
READ NEXT:
-
Boris Johnson is going... these are the 11 scandals which led to his downfall
-
LIVE: Police and fire crews evacuate homes on Bolton street after 'item of concern' found - updates
-
Tragedy as 'amazing' and 'cheeky' rugby player drowns in hotel swimming pool on family holiday
-
M60 crash between police car and van shut all lanes near Salford
