Stephen’s Story
As told by Stephen’s wife, Linda.
Stephen, known to everyone around him as ‘Bubba’, was diagnosed with a grade four brain tumour in June 2024, and life changed in an instant. Following brain surgery and the challenges of adjusting to life at home, he was introduced to the Living Well service at Sobell House.
At first, Bubba agreed to attend because he thought it would give me a break from caring for him. What neither of us expected was just how much it would come to mean to him.
Making new friends had never come easily to Bubba. He was happiest surrounded by his family. But at Sobell House, he found something special. The Living Well team welcomed him with kindness and warmth, and before long he had built genuine friendships with both staff and the other people attending the sessions.
Every Monday became something to look forward to. He would come home proudly showing me the things he had made with the teams help, and we shared wonderful moments together, including the Living Well Christmas lunch. The room was filled with such love and compassion. Those are memories I will treasure forever.
Sadly, in July 2025, Bubba suffered a major seizure that took away his mobility and led to him moving into a local nursing home. Despite everything he was facing, there was one thing he desperately wanted, to attend Living Well one last time.
The Sobell House team made it happen.
They arranged transport with one of their wheelchairs so that he could spend another day with the people who had become such an important part of his life. I met Bubba at Sobell House and we attended his last Living Well session together. The team were marvellous – welcoming us with open arms as we laughed at the fun times and memories Bubba had made there.
Pictured: The gardens at Sobell House
Pictured: Living Well activities
Pictured: the Living Well room
Like many people, we had always thought of Sobell House simply as a place where people went at the end of life. Our experience showed us something very different.
Sobell House became a place of support and living well despite a terminal illness. Through the Community Palliative Care Team, Bubba was cared for wherever he was. His community nurse, Moses, became someone he looked forward to seeing. Bubba would recognise him immediately, calling out his name before Moses even reached his bedside. Their bond brought comfort to us both.
As Bubba’s condition deteriorated, it became clear that staying at the nursing home was the kindest choice. Moving him would have been too difficult. Moses continued to visit, making sure Bubba received the same compassionate care until the very end. Just a few days before Bubba died in May 2026, Moses was there once again.
Looking back, every member of the Sobell House team made a difference to our family. The doctors, nurses, Living Well team, community staff, transport team, and fundraising team all played a part in Bubba’s journey, treating him with dignity and genuine kindness.
Sobell House gave Bubba friendship when he needed it most and it showed us that hospice care is about so much more than end-of-life care, it’s about helping people live as fully as possible for whatever time they have left.
Thank you to everyone at Sobell House, for all of your care and empathy.
Thank you so much to Linda for kindly sharing her family’s experience.