A Brisbane woman will swim the English Channel to raise money for the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation after her friend died from an aggressive form of the disease just a month ago.
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Jessica Warner was just 32 when she was diagnosed with brain cancer, glioblastoma multiforme.
The mother-of-two was pregnant with her daughter when she collapsed at a Sunshine Coast hospital in March 2015 and was rushed into emergency brain surgery.
Husband Brad Warner said the surgery put her in a six-day coma, leaving her legally blind. She woke to news her condition was terminal.
"There were doctors saying there is a chance she could pass away, I slept at the hospital to make sure if something was to happen that I was there," Mr Warner said.
"I think she took it very hard, she got very upset but it didn't come across all the time, she didn't withdraw from anyone, she took a bit of time just to accept it and tried to live life to the most, she tried to make everyone count."
While the diagnosis gave Jessica 12-18 months of life, the couple held onto hope she could battle it out for a few years and after her daughter Amelia was born on June 4, 2015, the determined mother started chemotherapy.
Mr Warner said their son Ben, who was two when his mum was diagnosed, and Amelia kept the devoted mother's spirits up.
"Throughout that journey she wanted to set an example for her children, set a legacy for her children to look at," he said.
"She wanted to show the kids that no matter what challenge comes up in life, that you can get through or deal with it, that is what she wanted to do."
As the Warners were trying to get a handle on the diagnosis, family friends Jane and Campbell Gordon were trying to work out how they could help.
Mrs Gordon had been competing in swimming marathons for a few years and thought she could compete in a swimming challenge to help raise awareness of brain cancer and raise money for her friend.
"I thought 'I can't do a two or three kilometre swim,that is a bit pathetic, if I want to generate awareness I thought I needed to do a big swim'," she said.
The mother-of-three decided to take on the English Channel and approached the couple to see what they thought.
"Initially, I couldn't really find the words, I was speechless, to have a friend who wanted to do this to raise money for something that was affecting Jess, I didn't really have the words to describe it," Mr Warner said.
"We were extremely humbled.
"Jane asked whether we wanted her to raise money for us. Jess said no, she preferred it to go towards the Cure for Brain Cancer Foundation to help people in the future to have a better chance of surviving."
Training began and a website was setup to take on donations for Swimming 4 Jess, something that kept the woman who "lit up a room" busy.
"She had an infectious personality and was one those people you always felt great being around, a lovely person," Mrs Gordon said.
"She had no control with what was going on in her health, but this was something she could take control over."
Mrs Gordon began a gruelling schedule of 4am pool sessions four times a week and ocean training on weekends, swimming an average of 40 kilometres each week.
The date for the swim was set for July 19 and everything was running on track until things took a turn for the worse.
"Around April this year it really started to deteriorate and then she went into palliative care for three weeks and every day she deteriorated," Mr Warner said.
Jessica died on May 24, 2016, just 11 days before her daughter's first birthday.
"That was a bittersweet birthday, it was great to see Amelia turn one, but it was sad because Jess's funeral was on the Tuesday and Amelia's birthday was on Saturday," Mr Warner said.
While the death of her friend hit hard, Mrs Gordon said she became more determined to continue with her challenge.
"The last time we saw her she was in palliative care and they didn't know how long she would have, to see her in there with a smile on her face, bright and bubbly, kind of spurred me on," Mrs Gordon said.
"She was still really excited about the swim and money we were raising, that was nice too, to have that positive thing to talk about and take her mind off it.
"When I am doing a tough training session I often think about her and her tough time and that spurs me on as she has many people who have been around her.
"She was an inspiration to the very end."
Training has ramped up for Mrs Gordon, who will be swimming in freezing water for more than 11 hours.
"The first couple of hours are on adrenaline, you get to see shipping containers, that will be pretty cool but after awhile the novelty will start to wear off," Mrs Gordon said.
"You have methods, singing songs, counting strokes, my husband will take a whiteboard on board and I will get him to write me messages that people have sent through.
"The hardest will be when you start to get bored that is when you start to think about how much pain you are in and how cold you are."
Mr Warner and his two children recently moved back to Weipa and he said he looked forward to watching Mrs Gordon swim for the woman he loved.
"She gets up early to get her training organised, the fact she can do that, I said it to Jane, it inspires me to get through some hard times as well, what she is doing is amazing," he said.
"Jess was really proud that she had a friend like Jane who wanted to do this."
More than $68,000 has been raised so far, to follow the Mrs Gordon's challenge or donate, head to their website.
Ferrier Hodgson and Colliers International were sponsors for Swimming 4 Jess and have provided direct financial support for the Mrs Gordon's English Channel solo swim.
