Thousands Raised For Children After Liverpool Mum's Tragic Death
A fund for the children of a Liverpool mum who died on New Year's Day has been inundated with donations.
The family of a Liverpool mum found dead on New Year's Day say they've received an "incredible response" - after setting up a fund for her children.
Tammy Jones' body was discovered by her 9 year old daughter last Friday morning at their home in Stockbridge Village.
The 35 year old had gone to bed as normal to watch Game of Thrones - and relatives say her death has come as a total shock.
Tammy had suffered with asthma problems all her life, and a pathologist has told her family she died as a result of a strain of pneumonia - which can cause death in a matter of hours.
Childhood friend Kelly McGovern, who's behind the fundraiser set up for Tammy's children, told us her death was completely out of the blue.
"She's come home, she's had asthma so she's gone to bed to watch Game of Thrones, and she hasn't woken up. The coroner's report came back that she's died of pneumonia. It's heartbreaking, for a nine year old to find her mum like that, it's going to haunt her for the rest of her life."
Tammy's youngest child, Elise, discovered her daughter on New Year's Day morning.
"She was asleep, with her hands under the pillow and her Snoopy pyjamas on," says Kelly. "The dog was at the bottom of her feet...the dog didn't...she went peacefully. She wasn't in pain. That's the only comfort we have."
Since Tammy's death, her children have been cared for by her sister Kim. But Kelly says it's a huge lifestyle change for her.
"Kim's 32, she's a prison officer, she's got a mortgage. So now she's got to learn how to be a mum, how to cook and clean - those kids are going to need feeding, dressing. She's got to give her house up and go and find a 3 bedroom house to rent. She's been sleeping on the floor as she's had to give her bed up for the kids."
Since news of Tammy's death was placed on an appeal page on Facebook, the family have been inundated with offers of help. Liverpool department store Rapid has now donated mattresses to Kim so she doesn't have to sleep on the floor - while charity Once Upon A Smile has offered to pay for the clothes Elise and her brother and sister - aged 13 and 12 - need for their mother's funeral.
A GoFundMe page, set up to help pay for Tammy's funeral and raise her children, has already received nearly seven thousand pounds in donations in just two days. They're hoping to eventually raise ten thousand.
Kelly says they've been overwhelmed by the support.
"It's just amazing. I'm not being greedy saying ten grand. The funeral is going to cost about five - you know how much things get swelled up with bills. There's links all over Facebook - it's unbelievable how many people have shared it."
If you would like to donate to the GoFundMe page set up to help Tammy's children, you can access it below.
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