It was four days after Christmas when Jade Rothwell learned her sister had died. “No,” she said as she let out a wailing scream. “You’re lying.”
Kelly Gleeson was just 40-years-old when she suddenly lost her life on December 29. She had been at home with her husband Jerry and teenage daughter Madison when she woke up feeling unwell.
The mum-of-one, who lived in Heaton Norris, Stockport, believed she was suffering from food poisoning. After spending most of the day throwing up, she decided to go to bed at around 6pm.
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Tragically, she would never be seen alive again. Around an hour later, 17-year-old Madison went into her bedroom to check on her. The pair had arranged to order a takeaway once Kelly began feeling better.
But Kelly was unresponsive. Paramedics were called to the family home but there was nothing they could do to bring her back.
“I was at home with my kids and my partner rang me and told me,” Kelly’s sister, Jade Rothwell, told the Manchester Evening News.
“He told me she had gone. I screamed and told him he was lying. We got the kids in the car and went straight to Kelly’s. That’s when I knew, when I saw everyone there. It was real. I had to go and say my goodbyes to her.”
It took four weeks for Kelly’s family to find out her cause of death. Kelly, who worked as a unit manager at a care home and had no previous health issues, died from pulmonary embolism.
A pulmonary embolism is a blocked blood vessel in your lungs and can be life-threatening if not treated quickly, according to the NHS.
Symptoms include sudden shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing or vomiting blood. A blood clot that has broken loose is called an embolism. If it has travelled to the lungs, it’s called a pulmonary embolism.
A pulmonary embolism occurs when one of the primary arteries in the lungs, the pulmonary artery, becomes blocked by a blood clot. These blood clots often originate in the leg and move through the body to the lungs.
Because this blood clot can compromise the functionality of the lungs, a pulmonary embolism can be serious or fatal.
“The paramedics couldn’t resuscitate her,” mum-of-five Jade, 30, of Edgeley, continued. “It was so unexpected. We couldn’t believe it because it was such a shock. It’s been lonely and quiet without her.”
Described as “bubbly” and “the life of the party”, Kelly was born and raised in Stockport, spending most of her childhood in Heaton Mersey. She met her husband Jerry 22 years ago and they went on to have a daughter together, Madison.
Tragically, she lost her brother Daniel to cancer in 2018, with her family now taking comfort in the thought of them being reunited and together again.
Kelly’s husband, Jerry Gleeson, said: “I’m absolutely devastated. My beautiful wife died on Thursday, December 29, and to say I’m heartbroken is an understatement.
“22 wonderful years we had together – well, when I wasn’t annoying her. I was good at doing that.
“I never stopped loving you and I will always love you. I promise I’ll look after our baby girl. The dog is lost. She keeps sitting on the rug staring up at the door, waiting for you to come home.
“I keep trying to take comfort in how well liked she was, but it just makes me feel worse. How can someone so beautiful be taken so soon? I’m going to be so lost without you.”
Kelly’s daughter, Madison, added: “My mum was my best friend and we did everything together no matter what. She was the loudest in the room no matter where we were or who she was with.
“She did everything for me and bought me everything I ever wanted. She always called me a ‘spoiled brat’, so this is my time now to repay the favour and give her the best send-off she deserves.”
A Gofundme appeal has been set up to help Kelly’s family pay for her funeral, which is set to take place on February 3.
To donate, follow the link by clicking here.
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