The children of a terminally ill couple who died of cancer within days of each other have shared a photograph of their parents' last moments together. The image shows Mike Bennet, 57, and wife Julie, 50, from Irby in Wirral, holding hands in a Merseyside hospice.
It was taken shortly before Mr Bennet died on Monday from a brain tumour. His wife, a primary school teacher, died on Saturday at St John's Hospice after being diagnosed with cancer last May.
Relatives and friends have launched a fundraising campaign to help the couple's three children, Oliver, 13, Hannah, 18 and Luke, 21. Friend Sue Wright said: 'I told her the community would come together to help look after her kids - and she opened her eyes and smiled.'
Friend Heather Heaton Gallagher described the family as 'down-to-earth' and 'known to all for their generosity and love for life'. She added: 'When Julie became ill, she made it her purpose to create as many memories as a family for the children to hold onto.'
A JustGiving page set up for the family has already raised £15,000.
