IN THE difficult days following her dad’s death from cancer, Alison MacMillan made a promise to help those who helped her to cope.

The 40-year-old stayed true to her word and, along with her mum, Margaret, now volunteers at the new Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice Shop in Clarkston.

READ MORE: Glasgow hospice receives £276,000 funding boost

“Mum and I had never been in a hospice before my dad became ill,” explains Alison.

“We feel we owe them so much for the support they gave us.”

Alison’s father Robert McIntyre, a retired police sergeant and keen runner, was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2014.

After six months of treatment, he was given the all clear – but a year later, the disease returned and this time, the family was told it was incurable.

“We thought we would have a few years yet,” recalls Alison, sadly.

“He was keen to do chemotherapy again and radiotherapy, so we hoped we might have a couple more years. But it wasn’t to be.

“He became pretty ill. He was at home some of the time. The hospice started to get involved in October – they came to do some home visits to see if we could rehabilitate him.

“But by the beginning of November, he was unable to walk and even though my mum and I did our best, being at home just wasn’t geared up to his needs.”

READ MORE: Glasgow hospice receives £276,000 funding boost

Alison, an area manager for a recruitment firm in Glasgow, says she will be “eternally grateful” that the hospice found him a bed for the last few weeks of his life.

“My mum and I were so grateful for the care he received from all of the staff at the hospice,” she says.

“He was at peace from the minute he went in, they treated him so well.”

The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, which will soon move from its current home on Carlton Place to a £21 million purpose-built centre in Bellahouston Park, cares for around 1200 patients and families each year.

Alison and Margaret say they also benefitted from the services offered by the hospice, in particular, the care of the family support team.

“The care was incredible,” she explains.

“My dad had a great faith in God and the chaplain was a great support to him. For a short period of time you all become a family.

“I suppose everyone looks at a hospice as quite a scary place.It's really not.”

After helping to stock the hospice’s new shop at Clarkston Toll, Alison and Margaret will both volunteer there.

READ MORE: Glasgow hospice receives £276,000 funding boost

“We want to make sure other families have the same experiences we had,” says Alison.

“Nobody knows when they’re going to need something like this.”

If you can help the new hospice shop at Clarkston Toll, call 0141 429 5599.