Cancer victim sends friends on skiing holiday from beyond the grave
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Your support makes all the difference.A man dying of cancer secretly arranged for his closest friends to take a holiday after his death - paid for with his life savings.
A man dying of cancer secretly arranged for his closest friends to take a holiday after his death - paid for with his life savings.
Handwritten letters from Dave Huddie, 23, were sent to 11 friends 10 days after he died.
He told them they had won a a holiday paid for from his life-savings to celebrate his life.
The surprise was planned after Mr Huddie learned he had just days to live. He left instructions with his twin sister, Jo Huddie, for the letters to be posted after his funeral.
A close friend, Sian Davin, 24, said: "At first I thought it was a horrible joke. But then I read it and burst into tears. It was such a nice thing to do."
Mr Huddie from Brighton, East Sussex, had saved more than £10,000, with half to go to his twin and half to be used for the holiday.
The letter read: "I've chosen 11 people who I deem to be my closest and most supportive friends, as I want to pay you back for your support and friendship."
But Mr Huddie, 23, added the condition that his twin and his friends had to have fun, saying, "absolutely no misery or complaints" were allowed. He said he would prefer them to go on a skiing or snowboarding trip, as he loved winter sports.
Mr Huddie was diagnosed with cancer in March last year while working a ski season in France, just nine months after he graduated with a first-class degree in artificial intelligence and management. By last summer, after chemotherapy treatment, he appeared to have made a full recovery. Mr Huddie organised a big new year's reunion meal with his friends, but three days before this was due to take place he received the crushing news that the cancer had never gone away.
He used traditional and alternative treatments to fight the disease, but in June this year he was taken into the Joseph Weld Hospice in Dorchester, where he died on 4 July.
Miss Huddie said: "Hours after he was told he did not have long left he came up with the plan. Dave loved the thought of his friends' expressions when they opened the letters. Miss Davin said the friends would go on the holiday next winter and would never forget his final act.
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