'We were like sisters' - daughter's heartbreak after mum died suddenly from meningitis

Georgia Martin urged her mum Kerry to get her flu-like symptoms checked out by a doctor.

But the family had no clue the beloved 41-year-old was just days away from having her life tragically cut short by a silent killer.

Despite the best efforts of medics to save her, mum-of-one Kerry passed away suddenly on March 26 after contracting pneumococcal meningitis.

Now - just days after saying her final goodbyes at her funeral - grieving daughter Georgia has paid tribute to her mum and bravely shared her story to raise awareness of the potentially fatal disease.

Georgia said: “We can't come to terms with how quick it was.

"Within the space of two weeks, she's gone to hospital, passed away and we've had her funeral.

"It does not feel real."

Kerry was born and raised in Elswick, Newcastle, and attended St Paul's C of E Primary School and Rutherford School which is now open as the Excelsior Academy.

The youngest of nine siblings, fun-loving Kerry enjoyed spells working as a cleaner and seasonal work making Christmas decorations for Eldon Square and the Metrocentre.

It was while working in the kitchen at a Newcastle city centre restaurant she met Georgia's father and future husband Alan.

When she was not doting on her daughter, Kerry enjoyed nights out at Eazy Street in Newcastle and holidays to Spain.

Georgia, 22, said: “She was the first one up at a party and the last one to sit down. As soon as a song came on, she got up and beat everyone to it.

“We were more like sisters, she always used to wear my clothes."

Kerry's sister Melanie, 43, added: “Family was very important to her. She had lots of nieces and nephews, and if she came over to visit she would stay for weeks.

“She was like one of the kids, it was really funny sometimes."

Kerry moved to Bishop Auckland, County Durham, and enjoyed a spell working as a carer at Willington Care Village.

She lived a short distance away from Georgia who would regularly pop in, and it was on one of these recent visits she first grew concerned about her mum's health.

Bed-ridden and vomiting, Kerry was convinced it was just a bug she would overcome in time.

But on her last visit to her mum's house, Georgia found her mum "hallucinating" and immediately called for an ambulance.

She said: "Mum was not right. She was tongue-tied and could not speak.

"She was hallucinating and I rang the ambulance. I knew it was serious"

Kerry was rushed to Darlington Memorial Hospital and medics consulted with experts at James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

But within just four days, the damage dealt to the 41-year-old's brain meant there was no chance of saving her.

Georgia said: "We thought it was just a flu or a bug. She had still been walking around her home.

"It was only when they told us she was completely brain dead it had been meningitis.

"We didn't have a clue. We thought she was going to come home.

“I'm actually thinking of moving back to Newcastle because I can't cope with my mum not being there.

"I'm not going to cope knowing her house is empty."

An emotional service was held for the popular 41-year-old at West Road Crematorium on Thursday.

Devastated friends set-up a fundraising page to help support Kerry's loved ones with the cost of an unexpected funeral.

More than £600 has been raised in a matter of days, and any surplus cash will be donated to charity.

Georgia said: "We'd like to say a huge thank you to anyone who has donated money. It’s been a huge help at such a hard time."

Now - just weeks after Kerry's sudden death - Georgia hopes her mum's story will help others be more wary of the symptoms of meningitis.

She finished: “You can never be too careful. If you are poorly, get yourself checked out.

"I want people to be more aware about meningitis."

To read more about Kerry's story and donate, visit her GoFundMe page.