A mother-of-four watched a video message from her children telling her how much they loved her hours before she died following a seven-year cancer battle.
Hayley Kalinins, from Borrowash in Derbyshire, was diagnosed with stage 4 incurable breast cancer before it spread to her lungs, liver and brain.
In a heartwrenching video, three of her children urged her: ‘Keep battling on. We all love you.’
It was the last time the 37-year-old saw them before she passed away last week.
Hayley’s husband, Sheffield Wednesday fitness coach Andy Kalinins, paid an emotional tribute to his wife who had a ‘zest for life and lived every second to the full,’ as he vowed to stay strong for their children aged 17, 12, 10 and seven.
Hayley Kalinins, from Borrowash in Derbyshire, died after a seven-year cancer battle
Sheffield Wednesday fitness coach Andy Kalinins, paid an emotional tribute to his wife who had a ‘zest for life and lived every second to the full,’ as he vowed to stay strong for their four children (pictured together on a day trip to London)
Mrs Kalinins and her husband welcomed their youngest daughter, Deena-Marie, in March 2011 just as football coach Andy won the League Cup with Birmingham City.
But their world came crashing down when Hayley was diagnosed with breast cancer in July that year and given just eight months to live.
Mrs Kalinins had been fundraising for treatment
She started chemotherapy every three weeks, racking up a total of 70 treatments.
When the NHS said it could do no more to help, a huge fund-raising campaign was launched which generated almost £250,000 for treatment in Germany.
On her donation page, Mrs Kalinins wrote: ‘I watched my daughter sing the Matilda song last night with a tear in my eye.
‘The other children were happily playing Monopoly and my husband had just walked in from work. Family Bliss. Sometimes it is just too perfect.
‘My four children need their mum. My husband needs his wife.’
But Mrs Kalinins’ condition got worse in April this year when tests revealed she was also suffering from brain tumours. She died on Wednesday, September 19.
Her husband said: ‘The day before she died, she whispered to me that she loved me and I held her hand. I just wanted to hold it forever.
‘I showed her a video of the kids playing the piano. It was the last thing she would see of them.
‘We always have this thing where we give each other the thumbs up and she did that as I left. That was the last time I saw her. It was just so sad.’
Paying tribute to his wife, Mrs Kalinins said: ‘Hayley was always smiling and always happy’
The youngsters played the piano as they recorded the message telling their mum how much they loved her
Mrs Kalinins’ youngest children urged their mother to stay strong and told her how much they loved her
Sheffield Wednesday fitness coach Andy Kalinins, pictured right while working for Birmingham City in 2011, paid a heartfelt and touching tribute to his wife
Mr Kalinins also recalled the moment he had to tell his children their mother had died.
‘I wanted them to know before hearing it from someone else. I got all four of them to sit down, I told them how she had been very poorly and that she had died.
‘There were lots of tears and cuddles and we sat up drinking milk and eating cake. I let them stay up a bit longer, but I made sure they went to school the next day.
‘They are all still going to their sports clubs. I wanted to make sure that life was as normal as possible.
‘We need to keep doing the normal things this is how we adapt. We have to learn to do things without Hayley, without mum.’
Paying tribute to his wife, Mr Kalinins said: ‘Hayley was always smiling and always happy. I used to text her calling her ‘Happy’.
‘I know its a the cliché, but she lived life to the full. There are 86,400 seconds in a day and she would live every single one with a zest for life.
‘We took the children on holiday. Hayley wanted to create memories for them and she wanted to give them the perfect home.’
Mrs Kalinins watched the video hours before she passed away
Her husband said: ‘The day before she died, she whispered to me that she loved me and I held her hand. I just wanted to hold it forever. I showed her a video of the kids playing the piano. It was the last thing she would see of them’
He added: ‘This is a love story, but it has a sad ending. I now have to carry that on and start the next book which is about being strong for my kids and ensuring that they fulfil their dreams in the future.
‘To me, she isn’t really gone. I still feel her presence and spirit in the house. I can still hear her and every time I make a decision, I can hear what she would say, as I have known her for so long.
‘I still can’t move her things. I have left her shoes where they are. It will be a while before I can bring myself to do anything like that.
‘I said before that I would not let cancer beat this family and I stand by that. My wife was strong and I am sure my children will have that strength within them.
‘They give me a purpose in life and I will be strong for them.’
The family will be holding a celebration of life for Hayley at Derby Cathedral in the next few weeks.