A 39-year-old mother of two spent the previous few months hunting for a new partner for her husband, someone who would value him and her sons.
Clare Mauremootoo was diagnosed with motor neuronopathy, a disorder that causes muscle weakness, in 2006.
Currently, there is no cure for the degenerative sickness that inhibits a person’s ability to walk, speak, swallow, and breathe. Clare was heartbroken at the prospect of not being able to support her 11-year-old husband John and their two sons, Ben and Jack.
She worked hard to find John a new love, even setting him up on dates with nurses at Somerset’s Weston Hospice, where she spent her final two months.
Despite his desire for her to be healthy enough to return home, Clare advised John, 52, to prepare for life without her. She hoped he’d find another lady to share his life with, someone who’d assist him care for their two sons.
“She promised she’d help me find love,” he added. She even began communicating with hospice staff in an attempt to set up a date for us.
“But, I wasn’t prepared.” Clare wanted me to be, even though I wasn’t sure if I would ever be.
She worked hard to find John a new love, even setting him up on dates with nurses at Somerset’s Weston Hospice, where she spent her final two months.
Despite his desire for her to be healthy enough to return home, Clare advised John, 52, to prepare for life without her. She hoped he’d find another lady to share his life with, someone who’d assist him care for their two sons.
“She promised she’d help me find love,” he added. She even began communicating with hospice staff in an attempt to set up a date for us.
“But, I wasn’t prepared. Clare wanted me to be, even though I wasn’t sure if I would ever be.”
John and Clare met through mutual acquaintances in 1993 and married two years later. Clare’s invitation to start dating again caught John off surprise because he had never imagined having a new partner in life.
He claimed she constantly said, “I don’t care how you meet someone.” She even recommended a few of our friends! “Everything seemed to be moving much too fast,”
Clare and John determined that the 11th of February would be the last time their sons would see her as her condition deteriorated.
Clare spent her final Valentine’s Day with John on February 19, 2007. Four days later, she died.
“Clare died in my arms,” John explained. I told her how much I loved her and told her not to worry about the boys because I would look after them.”
“I tried to carry on as usual, getting the boys ready for school and making dinner for them, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that Clare was watching us.”
“I didn’t want the boys to think I was taking over for their mother, even though I never forgot her plea for me to meet someone new.”
“But, once the lads had gone to bed, I was alone. I craved and missed Clare’s presence. As a result, in May, I created an account on a dating website.”
That’s how he met Julie Macfarlane, a nurse who had recently divorced and had two children: John, who was 10 at the time, and Isobel, who was six (pictured with John and his sons below).
“When the time came, I told Jack and Ben I was dating Julie,” John explained. “They were shocked at first, but they warmed up to her and her children over the next six months.”
The two families moved in together in March 2008, and John and Julie married in April 2012. Isobel was a bridesmaid, and their three sons were best men.
“I talked about Clare’s diagnosis, our time together, and her wish for me to find someone special,” John added.
“Clare wanted us to be happy, and I believe she would be now that things have turned out the way they have, so I told everyone I imagined her beaming down on us.”
