Positivity in a bottle: The story of Hans De Vrind

During his lifetime, Hans has had testicular cancer, prostate cancer, skin cancer, leukaemia, and a brain haemorrhage but has beaten them all. Even after one serious diagnosis, many of us may be guilty of thinking 'Why me?' But not Hans. As well as battling his illnesses, he's been fighting other people's since Saint Francis Hospice opened its doors 35 years ago.

"Some people say that I bury my head in the sand, but I don't think I do," he said. "I've just always been a very positive person."

When Hans was diagnosed with testicular cancer, his then-girlfriend and now-wife, Theresa, visited him in hospital.

"Why are you crying?" asked Hans.

"You've got cancer, and you never told me," she said.

"Well, you never asked me!" came Hans' reply.

The day after he was diagnosed with a brain haemorrhage, he carried on working on his laptop from his hospital bed.

"I was screaming for someone to let me out! That's always been my attitude. I've always wanted to carry on," he recalled.

Hans was one of 13 children. When he left school, Hans served in the Netherlands Fire Service. At 50, Hans took a career change and qualified as a mental health professional helping people who felt suicidal. One nurse said to him:

"I wish we could bottle your positive thinking and hand it out to patients. Nothing ever fazes you".

Hans has lost his dad and sister to leukaemia, and his brother is now living with the same illness. Cancer researchers poured over the De Vrind family's home, hobbies, lifestyle and diet to see if they could find a link. They concluded that four diagnoses of leukaemia in one family were purely a coincidence.

Since 1984, Hans has been here, there, and everywhere in our Hospice. He volunteers, fundraises, and is always there for those who need it the most.

"I'm no quitter", he said.

Thank you for everything you do for us and our patients, Hans.

N.B. Sadly, shortly after writing this article, cancer returned to Hans' body. Hans passed away peacefully at our Hospice in January 2020 with his loved ones around him. He was 72. Hans has left an enormous gap at our Hospice, and everyone misses him terribly. We'd like to thank Hans' family for allowing us to share his story.

If you'd like to help fill the void left by Hans, we need volunteers to do all different kinds of jobs across our Hospice, events, and charity retails stores. By volunteering, you'll be doing something incredible for people who really it.

To find out more, please visit www.sfh.org.uk/volunteer, email volunteering@sfh.org.uk, call 01708 758614, or we'd love to see you at our Hospice or one of our stores.