Kelsey Parker has delivered a profoundly moving tribute to her late husband, Tom Parker, as she marked World Cancer Day this Thursday. The 35-year-old influencer, who tragically lost the singer when he died from glioblastoma in March 2022 at just 33 years old, opened up about the devastating impact of cancer on her family. The couple shared two young children together, Aurelia, now five, and Bodhi, four.
A Life Divided by Cancer
In a powerful video message, Kelsey, who is now in a relationship with boyfriend Will Lindsay, spoke candidly about how cancer has reshaped her existence. She described World Cancer Day as more than just a date on the calendar for her family. "For us, it's a line in our life that split everything into before and after," she revealed. "Before cancer, I was a wife and mum, busy with normal life, normal worries. After cancer, I understood how fragile everything really is."
The Transformative Nature of Loss
Kelsey explained how losing Tom to a brain tumour fundamentally altered her perspective. "It didn't just break my heart, it changed the way I saw the world forever," she said. "It's love that has nowhere to go. It's learning how to carry someone with you, instead of beside you. It's smiling for your kids when your chest feels so heavy."
She addressed the complex emotions that accompany profound loss, stating: "Here's the part people don't talk about enough: You can be grieving and still be grateful. You can be broken and still be brave. You can lose someone and still choose to live."
Living with Purpose After Loss
The podcaster reflected on how her approach to life has transformed since Tom's passing. "Cancer steals time, future, plans," she acknowledged. "It also wakes you up, it makes you hold your loved ones tighter. I live now in a way that I didn't before. I say the I love you's, I take the trips. I hug longer. I don't sweat the small stuff like I used to before because I know that tomorrow isn't promised."
Moving Forward with Grief
Kelsey offered wisdom about navigating bereavement, emphasising: "Please hear me when I say, you don't move on from grief, you move forward with it. You grow around your pain. I'm still standing. Not because it hasn't hurt, but because love is stronger than loss."
Alongside her video, Kelsey penned an accompanying message for all those affected by cancer. She wrote: "It's a reminder of love, loss, strength I didn't know I had... and a life that changed forever when we lost Tom Parker to a brain tumour."
Additional Family Heartbreak
The tribute comes after Kelsey experienced further tragedy earlier this year. In June, she shared devastating news about her third child, Phoenix, who died one week before his planned due date. Breaking the news in a poignant poem on Instagram, she wrote: "The world grew quiet as you arrived, So loved, so longed for, yet not alive. Our precious boy, our angel light, Born with wings, took silent flight."
She added: "We named you Phoenix, brave and bright. A soul of love, of warmth and light Though we never heard you cry, You'll live in hearts that won't ask why."
Navigating New Relationships and Public Scrutiny
Kelsey, who found love again last year with Kent tree surgeon Will Lindsay after meeting him on a night out, has faced online criticism for moving forward with her life. Speaking on ITV's Lorraine in March during their first joint interview, she addressed the trolling directly: "It's been three years, this is Tom's three-year anniversary of his death, and it's almost like people want me to feel guilty for moving on."
She continued: "I'm always going to have guilt, but what's so hard is that Tom's not here anymore, so what do people want me to do? Our house was full of so much sadness, but now it's full of happiness. The kids deserve that more than anything."
Kelsey expressed hope that her openness might help others in similar situations, saying: "I just want other women to feel like it's OK to move on, it's not taking anything away from the love I had for Tom."
In her World Cancer Day message, Kelsey concluded with words of solidarity: "Today I'm holding space for everyone in the fight, everyone in recovery, and everyone learning to survive after loss. I see you. I am you. Love louder. Hug tighter. Don't wait for 'one day.'"
