The daughter of a Dundee church deacon has told how he was able to baptise his youngest grandchild just five days before he died from cancer.
Charles Hendry died one day before his 67th birthday on July 4 2024, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
The retired nurse, senior lecturer, and deacon was a father of five and had 17 grandchildren.
He baptised his youngest grandchild while at Roxburghe House hospice just five days before his death.
Dundee grandad ‘kept going’ after pancreatic cancer diagnosis
Now his daughter, Rachel Smith, has remembered Charles as she prepares to honour his memory.
Rachel said: “He kept going, even when his health was failing.
“He had haemochromatosis, diabetes, chronic fatigue, arthritis, yet he still baptised his youngest grandchild just five days before he passed, in the sanctuary room at Roxburgh House hospice.
“He made each of his seventeen grandchildren feel special.
“He was the kind of man who really listened. He was always there for us.”
Charles retired early at age 52 due to his health, but remained active in the community and through his work as a deacon at St Peter and Paul’s Church in Dundee.
Rachel said: “His faith was so important to him. He loved helping people, whether it was through the church or his work in nursing.”
She described how her parents met while working in Ward 3 at Ninewells Hospital.
Rachel is also now a nurse, and met her husband on the same ward.
She said: “My dad was a staff nurse, and my mum (Shona) was a student nurse. That’s where it all began.
“It’s kind of beautiful, really. Nursing is in our blood, you could say.”
Charles later earned a PhD and became a senior lecturer of nursing and midwifery at Dundee University.
However, Rachel said his proudest achievement was raising his family.
His eldest daughter, Sarah, is a head teacher, while his younger children Ruth and Katherine work in education support and cyber security respectively.
The youngest in the family, James, is a staff nurse in the emergency department at Ninewells.
Rachel said: “He was so proud of us all.
“Especially when we followed in his footsteps.
“Even if we didn’t choose nursing, he saw the values of care and service in all of us.
“Sometimes I can talk about him like it’s just a story.
“Like I’m giving a report. Other times, it just hits me out of nowhere and I break down.”
Daughters walking 80 miles in memory of dad who died after late cancer diagnosis
Rachel and Ruth are walking more than 80 miles across Scotland in memory of their dad.
The sisters will be taking part in all four of this year’s Kiltwalk events to raise funds for the charity Pancreatic Cancer Action.
Charles received a late diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and died soon after.
Rachel said: “We didn’t know what we were facing until it was too late.
“Pancreatic cancer is so hard to diagnose early, and that makes it incredibly cruel.
“We had very little time to prepare or ask questions.”
She added: “We wanted to honour our dad in a way that reflected who he was, someone who never gave up, someone who cared deeply.
“This is our way of keeping his memory alive and making sure other families get the chance we didn’t, to catch this disease earlier, to have more time.”
Pancreatic Cancer Action says the disease is known as a “silent killer” due to its easily overlooked symptoms.
The charity says 44% of cases are diagnosed in A&E, where it is often too late for curative treatment.
Just 10% of patients are diagnosed in time for life-saving surgery.
Common symptoms include persistent indigestion or heartburn, abdominal pain, unexplained weight loss, and jaundice.
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