Andy Smith’s wife, Helen, sadly died at Coventry Myton Hospice in 2019. Her writer and musician husband, Andy, has since written a book to help others and raise vital funds for Myton.

We asked Andy to tell us a little bit about their story and his book …

Helen passed away at Coventry Myton Hospice in August 2019. She was only fifty six years old. Almost a year later I started writing a book. I felt the need to share my experiences and also tell our story.

Writing was incredibly therapeutic, but I also hoped that my traumatic journey would help others in a similar situation (and raise money for the hospice). The result is ‘Twelve Months and Counting’.

It’s a ‘Grief book’, but hopefully it’s much more; it’s a love story.  My writing is brutally honest and the book is a personal account of how I felt losing the most important person in my life.

I write about dealing with my grief, both successfully and unsuccessfully, interspersing the dialogue with relevant excerpts from my Social Media pages in each chapter. There are photos of happy days spent with family and friends.

‘Twelve Months and Counting’ isn’t without humour – and ultimately it gives hope for the future. A future without Helen, but a future worth rebuilding and a life which is still worth living.

We can’t thank Andy enough for bravely sharing their story and helping to raise money for Myton.