Keep In Momentum

Full of life and fun loving Kim McDermott died on 13 May 2017, aged 55.

I had a unique, unusual and very special relationship with Kim. It was unlikely that we would ever be friends at all as she was the partner of my ex-husband with whom I had a very acrimonious relationship, post divorce.

But fate works in strange ways. Kim was very popular with my three kids, rightly so, but we never got to meet until my eldest daughter’s hen. We broke the ice over the cucumber sandwiches at the Dorchester and again at Lauren’s wedding a couple of months later.

But it wasn’t until she was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer a year or so later that our friendship took off. In the summer of 2016 my younger daughter Frankie graduated from Lincoln University in the amazing cathedral. Kim sat in the row in front of us. I remember thinking how poignant the commencement address to the graduates was, extolling the bright futures and endless opportunities ahead of them. For Kim the future was anything but. She knew that then, but didn’t show it. I resolved at that moment to help her.

That help took the form of what we jokingly called our Costa Coffee Catch Ups. Every week or so we met for a hot chocolate and a very long chat,  discussing the kids, the dogs (She had one of our Jack Russells who would keep her company during arduous treatments and chemo sessions) and putting the world to rights. We’d even share some friendly and amiable banter about the man we had in common!

When she got too ill to drive I’d pick her up and off to Costa we’d still go. She loved listening to my business plans for BoomBoss®, even though she knew she wouldn’t be here to see the launch. She was loving, kind, vivacious, was always up for a laugh, a party and a glass of wine. She was incredibly brave, had no trace of self-pity, with a fierce determination to do as much as she could in the time she had left, and she never gave up. She was a true inspiration. 
 As J K Rowling said at the end of her Commencement address to Harvard, 

“As is a tale, so is life: not how long it is, but how good it is, is what matters.”

Kim in many ways also embodied the ‘BoomBoss®’ mentality, even though she was not a business person. She was strong. A no BS action taker who didn’t want to waste another second of her life, who would have given anything for the opportunity to reinvigorate herself and take advantage of the endless opportunities out there.

For all these reasons and more I have created K.I.M. 

‘Keep In Momentum’ represents a positive mindset, a desire to keep moving ahead, making the most of our lives and the opportunities there for the taking.

So in memory of Kim, any woman over 50 who wants to start or grow a business and who has had cancer can access my programmes and support for 50% discount.

If that’s you, all you need to do is to contact me, and I’ll organise the discount and support for you.

Ali xx