Dying Banbury mum in appeal to give her boys a future

Family and friends of Sam Kyme - who was diagnosed with an aggressive form of Motor Neurone Disease (MND) in April - has started a Just Giving page in a bid to raise £15,000.

The money is needed to pay legal fees to allow her two boys to be taken legally to live in Australia with their aunt after her death.

Written by her sister Pippa Hughes on her behalf, Ms Kyme says in the appeal: “My greatest fear is not that I am dying - it is the welfare of my boys. I fear that Joey and Harry will go into care.

“My sister lives in Australia and has come over to care for me and the boys. My last wish is that she is allowed to have my boys once I am gone, to start a new happy life with her family.”

By June Ms Kyme’s condition had deteriorated and she was taken to Katharine House Hospice.

She recently returned to her Bodicote home where she will spend her remaining time, cared for by her sister.

Mrs Hughes told the Banbury Guardian: “The legal fees to allow me to become the boys’ official guardian will be huge. We will also have funeral expenses, flights and more.

“The sooner we can raise the money the better so we can start the legal proceedings. The lawyers don’t know how long it will take and we don’t want to be held up so the boys have to go into care.”

Mrs Hughes and her husband moved from Bloxham to Sydney in 2016 when his work was transferred to Australia. Mrs Hughes’ five year old daughter Ellie has come with her to the UK while she cares for her sister but she has not seen her boys for months.

“Sam came out to Sydney on holiday last Christmas. After she got back things started to go wrong. Her speech started to slur and she had trouble with one of her legs.

“By April she had received this terrible diagnosis. I came over for a few weeks but then she went into the hospice as she had lost all power in her body,” said Mrs Hughes.

“She came home for end of life care and now I look after her found the clock. We do have carers and she is now in the last stages of the illness.”

Mrs Hughes said her sister’s specialists were shocked at the speed of the disease. MND is most commonly seen in men of 60 - 80 years and offers life expectancy of three to five years.

“For a young woman to have this in her early 30s is very rare indeed,” she said.

Mrs Hughes said that even with legal aid the solicitors’ costs would be at least £10,000.

“Social services have to be involved here and in Australia to make checks on our home, schools and other things,” she said.

“We need to get things done as soon as possible. Sam needs the peace of mind that the boys’ future will be assured before she dies.

“The boys know and understand and they’ve been amazing. They know they will come back with me and be with family.”

Mrs Hughes and Ms Kyme have another sister and a brother in the Banbury area and although both work full time they help as much as they can. The family is originally from Bloxham.

“Sam has up days and down days. The incredible response the appeal has got since it was launched on Sunday has made her positive and her mood today is amazing. She’s feeling hopeful for her boys.”

To donate to Ms Kyme’s appeal go to www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/susanna-howard