A man has died of cancer just weeks after being diagnosed with the disease, leaving behind his pregnant wife and the couple's 2-year-old son.
Phil Hawthorne, 36, from Glasgow, Scotland, was diagnosed with bowel cancer on December 15, 2021, after experiencing several months of back pain, the Daily Record reported on Thursday.
At this point, the cancer had progressed to such an extent that doctors were unable to treat him and he died just over two weeks later on December 30.
"There was peace there, I think the cancer was just too far along for us to even think about him being on earth, it was just better for him to go," the man's 35-year-old wife, Ruth, who is expecting the couple's daughter in March 2022, told the Record.
She paid tribute to her husband, describing him as "selfless" and determined to "give back." Hawthorne had been a youth worker at an initiative called Room Sixty, based in the Scottish town of Ayr, and his wife said he was passionate about helping others.
"He had a special gift of speaking to people, young and old. He would just make you feel like you were so important, which was such a special gift to have," Ruth Hawthorne, said.
"To some people, being a youth worker is just a job but he gave it his all. It was part of his life, just to help people. That shows because there were so many tributes, it shows the type of person he was."
A fundraiser for Room Sixty has now been launched in Hawthorne's memory. At the time of writing, it has received the equivalent of more than $4,300 in donations.
"Phil Hawthorne started working at RoomSixty in 2014 as a youth worker; he was deeply devoted to all who passed through the doors," the organizer of the fundraiser, Jonathan Aitken, wrote in the GoFundMe page description.
"The loss of a son, a brother, a husband, a father and a friend is a hard thing to take, as is the loss of a role model and a mentor to the many youth in Ayr that Phil committed his time so passionately to. He spent his time walking young people through the ups and downs of life."
In a social media tribute, Room Sixty said its members were all "shocked and saddened" to hear of Hawthorne's death.
"Our thoughts and especially our prayers are with his wife Ruth, wee Lewis and their families," the statement said.
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