Award for mum who didn’t live to see her baby boy

Tragic Rosie gave gift of life to eight others.

When Lesley Kremer held her grandson Bobby for the first time, it was bittersweet.

For just after she welcomed the new life into the world, Lesley watched his mum her youngest daughter slip away.

Rosie, who was just 24, died of a brain tumour six hours after Bobby was born by emergency caesarean. Because she was in a coma, she never got the chance to meet her baby son.

However, the young mum helped save the lives of eight other people by donating her organs after death.

And in just a few days’ time, Lesley will collect an Order of St John Award on her daughter’s behalf, recognising that gift.

As she prepares to pick up the accolade, Lesley told The Sunday Post: “Rosie has given the gift of life to others and I think she’d be delighted to have made such a difference.

“We’re so proud of her and I’m sure when Bobby grows up, he’ll be proud of his mum too.”

The organ donation served as a tribute to Rosie’s late father, Peter, who passed away 11 years ago.

He always wanted to donate his, but wasn’t able to as he was suffering from cancer which spread.

After that, Lesley, from Penrith, and daughters Rosie, Ruth and Joanne, pledged to donate their organs in his memory.

“We never got round to signing the register,” Lesley said. “But I knew it was something Rosie always wanted so I gave consent.”

Rosie’s heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, liver, stomach and bowel were given to desperately ill people on NHS transplant waiting lists.

“They managed to use everything, except her bowel which was too big,” Lesley said.

“Her liver was split between two babies, a 15-year-old girl would be dead without her lungs and a man with a young family got her heart.”

For Lesley, 57, Rosie’s death in May last year was completely unexpected.

Rosie was ill throughout her pregnancy, but doctors dismissed it as nothing more than morning sickness or labyrinthitis an inner ear infection that causes

dizziness.

“It was clear something was wrong, but none of the doctors linked the symptoms to a brain tumour,” Lesley recalled.

“Rosie saw medics on 23 occasions in the last two months of her life and not one of them sent her for a scan. It was undiagnosed for so long.”

The Kremers are now suing the hospital trust after discovering Rosie’s tumour wasn’t fatal and she could have been saved even an hour before her death if her condition had been correctly diagnosed and fluid was drained from her brain.

However, they find comfort in the fighting spirit of little Bobby.

He had to be delivered 11 weeks early, and weighing just 2lb 14, faced a two-month battle in hospital for survival.

Now, 15 months on, the tiny tot has grown into happy, healthy baby and Lesley, who cares for him full-time, is adapting to life as a ‘mum’ again.

“Rosie left us a true gift with Bobby,” Lesley says. “At one point it looked like neither of them would survive, so we’re very lucky to have him.

“He can be a bit of a handful, especially at my age, but I don’t think I could have coped with losing her without him.

“He gives us something to be positive about.”