A RETIRED Barrow police officer of 25 years has tragically lost his battle with cancer – weeks after marrying the love of his life.
Mark Dempster died on July 7 after a shock terminal cancer diagnosis gave him weeks – if not days – to live.
The 55-year-old dad-of-one, who retired from the force in September, told nurses that he wanted to marry the love of his life Lianne.
The pair said ‘I do’ at Furness General Hospital on June 17 after Ward 9 staff arranged their dream wedding with just two hours of planning.
Three weeks after tying the knot, Mr Dempster died leaving behind his ‘best friend’ Lianne and daughter, Sophie.
Lianne described her late husband as a ‘fantastic person’ who she feels ‘grateful’ to have known.
“Mark was a fantastic person and a brilliant dad to his daughter Sophie,” the 32-year-old BAE worker, said.
“He was my best friend. Some people never find that in a person and I was lucky enough that I did.
“We only got to be married for three weeks but it was perfect. Getting to marry him meant everything. It meant everything to us to get married and now to have his second name and carry that part of him forward, it’s as if he’s carrying on.
READ MORE: Barrow couple thank Furness General Hospital for arranging dream wedding
“I’ll carry that through with me for the rest of my life. He’s very much missed. The amount of people that have messaged me is unbelievable.
“He fought his illness so bravely – he was just amazing. He was so headstrong; he didn’t show any fear.
“Mark was very kind. He would happily help anybody. He was a wonderful person – we couldn’t have got a better person. I’m going to miss him so much.”
Police and St John’s Ambulance volunteers formed a guard of honour at Mr Dempster’s funeral on July 18 to pay respects to their former colleague.
A passionate lover of cars, a parade of classic and rally vehicles also followed the funeral procession in tribute of Mr Dempster.
“Mark was a rally driver and was car-mad so it felt like the right thing to do,” Mrs Dempster said.
“There was hundreds of people at the funeral - people were lining up on Hawcoat Lane.
“I feel so grateful to have found him. If I could go back, knowing what I know, I would still pick him every time.”
Nearly £1,000 was raised at the funeral for Furness Homeless Appeal where Mr Dempster volunteered for more than 20 years.
Adamant on keeping her late husband’s memory alive, Mrs Dempster has organised the ‘Mark Dempster Memorial Car Gathering’ in September which she hopes will be an annual event to continue Mark’s legacy.
The event will take place on Saturday September 24 from 10am until 2pm at Lakeland Motor Museum, with 60 rally and classic cars already confirmed for the event.
The gathering is aimed at local enthusiasts and friends of Mr Dempster who want to pay tribute to the former rally driver and car enthusiast.
Raffle prices will also be available on the day to raise money for Ward 9 and MacMillan.
Special thanks have been given to raffle organisers Ed Mudd and Chris Williams.
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