Lynda’s Story

Originally from Bowness on Windermere, my younger sister and I enjoyed a very happy upbringing with lots of outdoor activities and helping our parents in their small café situated on the bay of Bowness. Being able to grow up and adventure in such a beautiful part of Cumbria before it became so busy was a luxury I am very grateful for.

On leaving school I worked in insurance and had an evening job in one of the local clubs.

It was working at this club that I met my husband. James, who used his weekends to sail on Lake Windermere, came in for a beer, tipped me a very generous 10p (this was the 1980’s) then asked me out on a date; two years later we were married in Kendal and our daughter Sarah was born two years after that.

When Sarah was 2 years old we adventured North and moved to Scotland and the rest is history, as they say.

Once Sarah was in primary school, I retrained and qualified as a nursery nurse. I spent 18 years working for Dumfries and Galloway council supporting children with disabilities, as a 1:1 support worker and later as part of a larger team within primary schools. This work and the children used to light up my life, giving me great satisfaction.

James and I are now retired, we enjoy our classic cars, taking them on road trips around the UK and the continent and attending classic car shows. We are also using this time in our lives to travel as much as we can, having had some incredible experiences in India, South Africa and Canada to name a few. In between our busy social life we adore spending time with our two beautiful grandchildren, Hayden and Hope.

James was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the end of 2025 after his PSA levels had risen and a biopsy was taken.

It was through one of my girlfriends that we were introduced to Prostate Buddies D & G and the work they do in Dumfries and Galloway.

At our first monthly meeting we met others who had been through what we were heading into and this provided lots of reassurance, helpful advice and suggestions we had not thought about; making our journey a little less traumatic. All the Prostate Buddies and Prostate Partners made us feel very welcome.

James had a prostatectomy in January 2026 and we feel very fortunate with his amazing recovery.