The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A terminally ill woman has turned to crowd funding after having no heating for 18 months at her South Holland home.
Lisa Hartley (45), has clinically died 11 times amid a series of health scares, but her oil boiler broke 18 months ago and she can’t afford to repair it.
She and her carer Rob Flatters also had no hot water at the Pinchbeck home for 11 weeks until a kind-hearted engineer sorted the problem for them at the weekend.
Lisa was fitted with a pacemaker and defibrillator after she was hit with a blood clot and sepsis following surgery.
She also contracted meningitis after spinal surgery in 2018 and spent more than 19 weeks in hospital.
Lisa is unable to work and, alongside the charity St Barnabas, any attempts to qualify for government schemes for new boilers have been met with the companies responding there’s no funding left.
In desperation after nearly three months without hot water and struggling with a cold, last weekend Lisa posted on a trades website asking for help.
Spalding engineer Konrad Gwarda via the Checkatrade website stepped forward and fixed the problem so the pair were able to have a hot shower for the first time in nearly three months.
But the heating issue remains for Lisa (pictured), who featured in The Voice two weeks ago asking local businesses to support the St Barnabas Hospice. She says it helped turn her life around after she was given only 48 hours to live at one point.
Her life was turned upside down in 2018 when an operation on her fused spine led to the onslaught of problems.
After an initial nine weeks in hospital, she had to return two weeks later as sepsis led to a brain swell and meningitis for which doctors placed in her coma and gave her 48 hours to live. She recovered and left hospital 19 weeks later having learned to walk and talk again.
Lisa twice suffered heart failure and had a pacemaker and defibrillator fitted. It has already saver her life 11 times and re-starts her heart when needed, but her condition is terminal.
She credits St Barnabas, Rob and her three horses for helping her get through.
Lisa says she set up the Just Giving page as with neither of them able to work they can’t afford a new boiler.
They don’t know the exact cost, but they paid £5,000 for the current broken one five years ago.
“It’s not east for anybody at the minute unfortunately, but it’s got to the stage we thought we would ask if anyone wants to help,” Lisa said.
“With the help of St Barnabas we’ve gone through all the boiler schemes they say you’re eligible for. They come and have a look, then say the government funding isn’t there to do the work.
“I own the house. That and the horse box that was stolen after the insurance ran out when I was in the coma.
“Last winter I got through with pretty big blankets and I coped without hot water for 11 weeks washing my hair in the sink like I did as a little girl.
“At a loss, struggling in bed with a cold I put something online and Konrad was amazing in working for free to get the water back on finally.”
Much of their income also goes on Lisa’s three horses but she credits them with being vital for her mental health.
“My animals keep me going,” she said. “Without them I don’t think I would be up and about.”
She has special thanks for the Munro Medical Centre and St Barnabas whom she’s urging local businesses to help the HeARTworks campaign to get a Heart Trail statue in Spalding.
Her fundraising page is at: www.gofundme.com/f/help-lisa-get-warm-this-winter
