A man has told how his life changed forever after the sudden death of his big sister.
Josh Hughes was 18 when his sister Sophie suddenly fell ill in 2013. Josh, who was studying at University in Lancaster was woken by a late night phone call from his dad telling him Sophie wasn't well and to come straight home to Halewood.
Sophie, who had Down's syndrome, was just 21 when she died, to the shock and devastation of her family.
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Josh said: “It was a really hard time for all of us. We were all in shock as it was very sudden. We were all there for each other but it was really difficult to go through. I think it still affects us now even though it’s been a long time.
“At first I don't think we knew how to cope with the news but we're lucky in that we have good family and friends that helped us through.”
Now 10 years later, Josh says the family have turned to fundraising in Sophie's memory. Most recently, Josh ran the Chester Marathon earlier this month in honour of his sister, raised almost £1000 for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital where Sophie was looked after throughout her life.
During the race, Josh began to suffer from low blood pressure when fellow Knowsley Harriers runners stepped in to make sure he finished the race. Josh praised his friends for helping him across the line and said: “I was all over the place, if they had not carried me to the line, I wouldn't have been able to do it.”
This is not the first time Josh has raised money for Alder Hey. Every year Josh hosts a sponsored football match on Sophie’s birthday, and has raised £35,000 over the past 10 years.
Josh said: “It was emotional but it meant we could focus on something and channel everything we were going through into something positive.
“It meant a lot to do it for Alder Hey as well, they'd helped Sophie a lot when she was younger and we know the great work they do. It was great to go in afterwards with the money raised and hand it over.
“It was also amazing to see the support we got from so many people and how much Sophie meant to everyone.”
Josh said that Sophie’s death has “definitely has had an impact" on his outlook on life. He said: "I think it's shown me how important family is and to make the most of everything as you never know what could happen.”
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