I FIRST saw Victoria Wood in the Ulster Hall. She walked on stage in a shiny orange raincoat and yellow beret; she was looking for her friend Kim-ber-ly; “Have you seen ‘er?” she asked.
Soon I was under the chair in helpless laughter. This woman turned her hand to so many aspects of humour and pathos. The television movie That Day We Sang showed off her writing and directing talents, the gentle story of a boy and a girl who sang in a choir then meet up in adulthood and fall in love. A perfect professional, a renaissance woman, a genius.
AT THE end of last year Gary Hunter got the news that he had cancer. He wrote to me about it.
“I know, from personal experience, the devastation wrought by cancer, not only on the person affected, but the whole family. I’ve an incurable form of leukaemia and I’ve undergone surgery for transitional cell carcinoma. Just before Christmas, a CT scan revealed an ‘abnormality’ in my left lung. My life seems to consist almost entirely of unpleasant (and necessary) examinations, scans, blood tests and poking with sharp, shiny metal objects.
“But you have to discover your own way of coping with a cancer diagnosis. You find out so much about yourself and what you are capable of. Some people decide to share this to help others going through a similar experience.”
The positive side has been the inspiring people Gary met along the way, healthcare professions and organisations like Macmillan Cancer Support, Marie Curie and Cancer Focus. But above all he discovered Hope House.
“The seemingly endless cycle of hospital appointments and treatments can be physically and emotionally draining. Moreover, when treatment is finished, there can be the uneasy feeling of 'What do I do now?'”
He needed somewhere to rest and review his life, peace and quiet in sympathetic surroundings.
“Hope House must be the best-kept secret for those of us living with cancer. This wonderful resource is located in the delightful seaside town of Whitehead, Co Antrim, an apartment with incredible sea views; indeed it’s hard to believe you’re only 17 miles from Belfast. The apartment is only a few minutes’ walk from a railway connection to Belfast City Hospital and the town is well-served by Ulsterbus – ideal for patients facing long, tiring journeys for treatments to enjoy a break while easing the strain of travel.”
In February he arranged to stay for a weekend and to meet and talk to Dawn McConnell, the woman who was inspired to open this sanctuary of hope.
In February 1990, at the age of 34, Dawn’s husband Roy was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma with a 30 per cent chance of survival. After a year-and-a-half of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant, Roy surprised his doctors when he recovered and he remained in remission for 21 years.
In 2012, however, Roy’s cancer returned; one year later, after difficult treatment, thankfully he received the all-clear and is currently well. But all was not well, as Gary learned. Last year Dawn was diagnosed with breast cancer and faced surgery and chemotherapy.
“Such an experience would overwhelm most couples but the McConnells,” he said. “They are inspirational in their determination to channel their experiences into helping others living with cancer.”
The vision for Hope House originated when, during Roy’s treatment, the couple were offered the use of a seaside apartment, free of charge. They found the tranquillity to be restoring, a place of refuge during what Dawn describes as a dark storm in their lives.
Immediately she envisaged a sanctuary which could provide free holiday accommodation for older adults and she established the Hope House Charity in October 2013. The objective was to rent somewhere by the sea, a place of rest and recuperation for people living with this disease.
Dawn takes up the story: “When Roy was going through his cancer, I realised there was nowhere for people of our age to recover from the stress of surgery and treatment and the trauma of going through cancer. We’d often walked along the Marine Parade and I thought how wonderful it would be to have one of the houses overlooking the sea but I never thought it would happen.”
But the Lord works mysterious ways his wonders to perform. One of the apartments in the block came on the market and they were able to rent it for six months, furnish it and print leaflets offering this oasis of peace.
I visited last week. The apartment is beautiful, warm and spacious; two bedrooms, an efficient kitchen, a disability-friendly bathroom and a sitting room where you can sit at a table and eat or just look out of the window as Gary did.
“My intention was to work on my writing,” he says, “but I spent most of the first day just sitting, staring out the window at the ever-changing sea. I woke early the next morning after a restful sleep; it was still dark and I sank into a comfortable chair, cup of tea in hand, watching the ferry glide ghostly up the lough, lights piercing the dawn mist.
"Later that morning, I walked along the promenade, breathing in the fresh sea air and I felt the stress and fatigue of the last few months melt away. I saw frolicking seals and watchful cormorants and enjoyed conversations with dog-walkers and others simply taking the air while enjoying the view. The downside was, of course, I had to go home. Restored and refreshed, I reluctantly caught the train back to Belfast but I’ll certainly be back to Hope House.”
:: Dawn and the Hope House team can be contacted on 0776 4406 646, 0845 6431 632 or for details on how to make a booking or help with fundraising, go to www.hopehouseireland.org.
