A MALVERN woman has vowed to continue her late former husband’s fundraising legacy following his recent passing after a long and tireless battle with an aggressive brain tumor.
Former Observer journalist, Ben Lindon of Malvern, died on May 29 aged 46 – 16 years after being diagnosed with an aggressive oligodendroglioma at just 29-years-old.
Ben’s former wife Kate Lindon, also of Malvern, is continuing his work with the charity Brain Tumour Research to raise awareness of the disease that has left their children without a father.
The pair share a daughter, 13-year-old Martha, and a son, 10-year-old Sid.
Kate said: “Ben fought a brave battle, raising awareness and support by raising more than £10,000 for Brain Tumour Research.
“Ben wanted others to have a fighting chance, and he knew fundraising was his way of trying to ensure other families don’t have to experience what he went through.”
Ben was first rushed to Warwickshire Hospital when he suffered seizures and a stroke in March 2008. Further deterioration resulted in a number of falls leaving Ben reliant on a wheelchair and mobility scooter to get around.
He committed himself to a series of increasingly demanding challenges to raise awareness and funds for Brain Tumour Research.
From the Three Peaks Challenge to the London Marathon, and even a 1,000-mile bike ride from John O’Groats to Land’s End, Ben used each feat as both a personal milestone and a public statement.
Kate said: “Despite the fatigue and toll of ongoing chemotherapy, he was on his 89th cycle when featured in a national newspaper, he kept pushing forward.”
Ben’s tumour was too risky to surgically remove due to being close to his cerebral cortex, which controls motor functions such as movement and speech.
Surgery would have put Ben at risk of dying in the operating room or suffering a severe stroke and paralysis. Instead, Ben underwent 120 cycles of radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, thought to be the most given to any patient in the UK.
In 2017, during Ben’s 100th chemo cycle, he kayaked 100 miles along the River Wye, supported by mementos from his children.
Ben not only became a tireless fundraiser but also a passionate advocate, helping present a landmark report to Parliament on the cost of brain tumours, both personal and financial.
Kate added: “He made a powerful and immediate decision, to fight not just for his own health, but for the wider cause.
“Instead of allowing the diagnosis to define or defeat him, Ben chose to lead a healthier life, physically and mentally, and to focus on others who were also suffering.”
Katrina Jones, head of community and digital fundraising at Brain Tumour Research, referred to Ben as an ‘extraordinary individual whose courage, determination and tireless fundraising inspired everyone who knew him.’
She added: “Ben was an extraordinary individual whose courage, determination, and tireless fundraising inspired everyone who knew him.
“His legacy will live on in the lives he touched and the progress he helped make towards finding a cure. We are deeply saddened by his passing and profoundly grateful for everything he did for our community.”
Visit https://braintumourresearch.org/donate or leave a gift in your will via www.braintumourresearch.org/legacy to honour Ben’s legacy.
