Chesterfield mum who raised over £100,000 for Ashgate Hospice in memory of daughter urges support for latest appeal

Tracie Holocuk will be dedicating a beautiful handcrafted stainless-steel butterfly in memory of her “fun, intelligent and caring” daughter, Kimberley Trickett.

Her butterfly will be one of about 1,000 which will form a stunning display in front of the house entrance at Chatsworth for three weeks, starting next month.

The Butterfly Appeal, sponsored by Graysons Solicitors, will support people like Kimberley, who spent much of her life in hospital between her first diagnosis with cancer when she was five to her death, aged 20.

After doctors told her she had an aggressive inoperable brain tumour, she spent the last five-and-a-half weeks of her life being cared for at Ashgate Hospice’s Inpatient Unit.

Tracie, 57, said: “I am so proud to call Kim my daughter. She was a very positive person and always said she would beat the cancer – each and every time she did, until the brain tumor.

“Kim won bravery awards and I am not surprised; she was stoic in her battles to beat cancer and positively influence others.”

Kimberley, who was born in Chesterfield and spent most of her life living in Stonebroom, died peacefully at the hospice in July 2009.

In the last few days of her life, the hospice was able to fulfil her wish of visiting her family home, aptly called “Butterfly House”, for one final time.

Tracie said that the compassion and love Kimberley encountered inspired her to work for the charity for the last decade – as well as helping raise more than £107,000 in her memory.

She added: “Before I went to Ashgate I envisaged a place that resembled an old-fashioned poor house, with high ceilings, smelling of sick and stiff matrons barking orders at their staff – I couldn’t have been more wrong.

“As soon as I stood outside the reception, I started to cry with relief, I could already feel the calmness and tranquility of the place.

“The camaraderie of the staff and volunteers brightened up our days and nights. The Ashgate angels helped us so much by being there whenever we needed anything.

“Our dog Bracken was also allowed to come and see Kim and the food was restaurant standard; they will bend over backwards to give their patients everything and anything they could possibly want.

“It’s just a home from home and my special memories of our time there are still so vivid.”

Hundreds of butterflies will go on display as part of a stunning installation at picturesque Chatsworth between May 23 and June 12.

Supporters can get their butterfly in return for a suggested donation of £25, which will help fund the hospice’s care for families like Tracie’s across North Derbyshire.

Before her death, Kimberley was determined to be a nurse and, “in the face of adversity”, worked hard to achieve a place on a master’s degree in children’s nursing at the University of Nottingham.

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Tracie is proud to be supporting the Butterfly Appeal – a theme which is especially apt given Kim’s love and connection to butterflies.

She said: “I once said to Kim in the hospice ‘what are you going to come back as then?’ She replied: ‘Don’t ask daft questions, a butterfly of course!”

“All our family and friends truly believe that whenever we see a butterfly it’s Kim popping by to say hello and it’s a reminder to be positive and grateful to be alive.

“She was always my beautiful butterfly, so when the hospice told me they were holding a Butterfly Appeal it was just meant to be.

“I hope other families will join me in dedicating a beautiful butterfly keepsake in memory of their loved ones, so the hospice can be there to help people like my Kim in years to come.”

To dedicate a butterfly visit Ashgate’s website here or call the hospice’s fundraising team on 01246 567250.