In October 2004 all our lives changed for the worst. Roy, a loving husband, father and grandfather, a fit, healthy tower of a man, had a headache. We think on that day he knew it was somehow different and no matter how much we tried to believe otherwise, he knew from that moment on that there was no way back and a mountain ahead. For four months a terrible tumour - Glioblastoma Multiforme - raged and tortured him, culminating in a terrible, painful death for him, and for us who watched him suffer so, rendering us powerless to offer any relief.

This tumour took everything from him, leaving him confused, disorientated, frightened and in agony. We didn't know what was happening and felt that the medics around us appeared as much in the dark as we were. Ultimately, as well as taking everything from Roy, this tumour took everything from us, leaving us without a loving husband, father and grandfather - a man who was 'our world'.

Really in such a short space of time we have gone from a loving, normal family who enjoyed family life to having a huge emptiness, struggling to understand how this could happen and unable to forget the immense suffering a man, so undeserving of such pain, went through.

We are so angry at what this disease does to people: the pain and suffering it creates; the destruction it swiftly causes, offering no opportunity to battle or fight it. It should not happen in this day and age. This is so unlike any other cancer, its destruction was so raging and so rapid. Roy wasn't even left with the ability to think positively to try and beat it. He and we were powerless: there were no straws of hope to grasp at the disease, it even seemed to feed and thrive on the radiotherapy that he endured. Roy knew from the start the situation was hopeless.

This year we wanted to do something to raise further funds for Brain Tumour UK in memory of Roy, to try and go some way in stopping this illness. Therefore we arranged a brass band concert with a difference, as near to Roy's birthday as possible. Black Country Brass is an established brass band. Roy's son in law is the musical director and his daughter, Jeanette, and grandson, Elliott, play in the band.

As well as the band playing, a family friend, Hayley John, sang four songs accompanied by the band, so there was a lovely blend of entertainment. All of Roy's family and dearest friends attended and it was an opportunity to share wonderful memories and to talk about Roy.

We hope we are able to do something in 2006 so that some good can come out of such emptiness and tragedy.

Iris, Jeanette, Paula, Adrian and families