Family's tributes to tragic Shropshire mother

And they spoke of the happy day just months before Lisa Gill's death when she married her long-term partner Jas, with their children Jake and Ruby present.

Lisa, 45, passed away at the Severn Hospice in Telford. The mother-of-two was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012, which later spread to her brain.

She has left behind Jas, 46, Jake, 14, and five-year-old Ruby.

The family, of Brandon Avenue in Admaston, said despite being told by doctors that her illness was terminal, Lisa "fought as hard as she could, for as long as she could".

She married Jas in January this year to mark the love they had for each other and their children.

He said: "We had planned to grow old together. It's truly unfair.

"There were no symptoms or signs to say she was so unwell – it came as a bolt out of the blue. I cannot think of a single person who had a bad word to say about Lisa."

Problems started when Lisa found a lump in her breast in 2012 and following a visit to the doctor and a mammogram, it was confirmed that cancer had also spread to her bones and liver.

While chemotherapy treatment shrunk and stabilised the cancer, it ended in January 2013 and from then on she underwent other treatments.

A year later she had a head scan after suffering from chronic headaches over the Christmas period, which found multiple tumours on her brain.

Jas, who became her full-time carer, said: "She then went through radiotherapy and had a course of steroids.

"By the last week in July this year her condition had deteriorated rapidly. At the start of that week she was able to go out and about but by the end of it she could barely walk."

Following three weeks spent bed bound at home, Lisa was taken into the Severn Hospice in Telford, which gives specialist care and support free of charge to families across Shropshire and North Powys who are living with an incurable illness.

Her son Jake, who attends Charlton School in Wellington, praised his mum for being such a "fantastic role model" and promised to make her proud.

He said: "She fought as hard as she could for as long as she could and gave the family as close to normal lives as she could.

"She never wanted Ruby to see her cry – she was great at being positive.

"Mum was compassionate, caring and loving. She never stopped smiling.

"People who met her were touched by her smile and all the nurses in the hospice would always ask for a little grin. Even in her last weeks she was smiling. I saw her crying once and asked her why. She replied 'because you and Ruby and dad don't deserve this'.

"She told me she would fight as hard as she could for as long as she could, if not for her but for the rest of us and she did just that.

"Mum always tried to carry on as normal and forget about her illness as much as she could. It was the right way to stay happy.

"She did not lose her battle with cancer, she won because she showed that nothing was going to stop her spending time with her kids and husband, who she loved with all her heart.

"Even when she was too weak to speak she would keep asking me if I'd fed our fish Flossy. The last time I spoke to her, I said thank you for being such a fantastic role model."

He said his mother, who was an accomplished violinist, also inspired his passion and talent for music.

Lisa was born in Wellington, where she attended Dothill Primary School and later moved on to Charlton School before she met Jas at New College in Telford in 1985.

She started work for the Department of Social Security as an admin officer in 1987, before moving to the Benefits Agency in New Town House in 1994 and later transferring to the Telford Job Centre Plus in 2003, to work as a personal advisor. Before her illness, she celebrated 25 years in this line of work and was medically retired in 2013.

She also dedicated her time to volunteering at St Peter's Primary School in Admaston, where her daughter Ruby attends.

The family praised the staff at Severn Hospice for their support in helping Lisa through her illness and also supporting the family after her death.

Lisa died a fortnight ago. Her funeral took place at Telford Crematorium last week.

Norma Ross, Severn Hospice appeals director, said: "We are very pleased to have been able to support Mr Gill and his wife at their time of need.

"I hope everyone who has supported our hospice feels they have played their part in making the care Mr and Mrs Gill received possible."