A 23-year student is facing homelessness after the tragic and sudden death of his beloved mum. Conrad Wilcox and his mum Shirley were enjoying a Friday night in when she passed away.
He is now having to organise the funeral and sort out the finances while grieving for his mum. Shirley described as ‘kind and caring’ died from a ruptured aneurysm - she was diagnosed with the aneurysm in 2021.
Speaking exclusively to Stoke on Trent Live about the night his mum died, Conrad said: “It was a Friday night, she had ordered herself a takeaway. After she had eaten the takeaway, she said she had back pains. It just felt normal, it didn’t feel like anything would happen and she was OK through the day.
“I had an assignment due in at uni. It was due that night, so I was in my bedroom. I heard my mum shouting, I thought she was shouting at the dog, she went to lie down in bed. I got her some paracetamol and a drink to take them with.
“I went back to my uni work and I just thought, what the signs of a ruptured aneurysm, I looked online and it came up with her symptoms. I asked her if this is what she’s feeling and as I asked her she fainted in the bathroom.”
Paramedics came to the home, and Shirley sadly died in the early hours of Saturday morning. Because she was a council tenant, Conrad now has to find somewhere else to live.
He feels his options for finding a new home are narrow, because it needs to be fairly close to his workplace, accept dogs and fit within his budget. Since Shirley passed away, Conrad has had to take on all the jobs his mum used to do.
He said: “It’s like I'm living in a different world. There’s things cropping up that I never thought of, all the things my mum dealt with. I’ve had council tax bills, gas and electric bills in my name, even just putting the bins out. It’s a big step up, I didn’t think it would happen so quickly. It’s only been two weeks.”
Another thing he’s tackling alone is organising a funeral for his mum. Conrad said: “The minimum cost is just under £3,000. Then you have to pay for a coffin, any flowers and cremation, a cremation just below £900. It’s all adding up, the cost of the service, whichever church you go to, the order of services, the hearse. If you want to follow behind the hearse as a family, that's an extra £250.”
Conrad’s cousin Larissa Wilcox set up a GoFundMe to help him tackle the huge finances he is faced with.
Conrad said: “I’m more than grateful for what everyone has donated, it’s so hard to put into words the support I've had. I’ve had loads of people asking to go to theirs for Christmas, it just means a lot. I know that my mum would be really happy that everyone's looking out for me and that I’ll be able to give her a good send off.”
To donate, visit the GoFundMe campaign.
