Tributes to Zoe Harold from Framlingham who died from CJD

Zoe Harold, 54, was diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) in January. 

The condition has no cure and Mrs Harold died at Ipswich Hospital on February 25. 

She leaves behind her husband and partner of almost 38 years Gavin, her three children Matthew, Amy and George, her brother Zak and her mum Audrey.

Her husband Gavin said: "She was very caring by nature.

Zoe Harold passed away aged just 54 (Image: Submitted)

"She was very kind, loving and giving.

"It was no surprise that she left school and did a pre-nursing course at Suffolk College and then went on to do a three-year course in Norwich and go on to work in the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital for many years, it was in her nature.

"She was an incredibly friendly person, always saw the best in everyone she was non-judgemental and put her energy into supporting other people and caring for others before herself.

"She was an amazing person, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have met her when I was 17 and she was 16 and we spent so long together.

Zoe with her husband Gavin (Image: Submitted)

"We had an incredibly happy marriage, never had any fallings out or issues and had three wonderful kids."

Zoe was diagnosed with CJD, a rare and fatal disease which affects the brain, increasing damage rapidly over time, in January.

It affects just one in a million people in the UK every year.

Gavin continued: "There were one or two aspects of her personality which didn't seem right in early December.

Zoe with her children, George, Amy and Matthew (Image: Submitted)

"She was struggling to read and follow instructions and her short-term memory wasn't as it should be.

"Things just snowballed from there because the first faulty prion cell destroys itself, it takes two in the process, and then those two each take two cells and it just rapidly happens.

"By Christmas she was really struggling both mentally and physically, struggling to walk, struggling to cut food up and wash herself.

"Things got really scary in early January, one or two occasions she asked me who I was because she didn't recognise me."

Zoe with her mum Audrey (Image: Submitted)

Zoe was admitted to Ipswich Hospital on January 10, and underwent a number of tests before being told it was CJD, and that there was no cure.

"The level of care she received at Ipswich Hospital when she was bed-bound for the remaining five weeks of her life was absolutely outstanding" Gavin added.

Just a couple of days after her passing, her children decided to set up a fundraiser, to help find a cure for the disease, donating all the money to Cure CJD, a campaign b University College London Hospitals Charity UK.

Within 24 hours, this fundraiser had raised around £6,000, and is now at £10,838.

Zoe and her brother Zak (Image: Submitted)

Gavin said: "It's extraordinary.

"The lesson I've really learned from my time with Zoe, is that if you're kind, caring and genuine, you can have such an impact on everybody you meet and this proved that.

"The funeral service, conducted by Browns of Saxmundham, who have been brilliant throughout too, they described it as the biggest funeral they've ever done.

"Their estimate was between 250 and 300 people attended at Seven Hills Crematorium, the queue was unbelievable and it's testament to the impact she had on people's lives.

Zoe and Gavin (Image: Submitted)

"Whenever she bumped into people, she wouldn't walk past, she took a genuine interest in how they were and how the children were doing.

"We gave her a really good send-off and I know she will be missed by the staff and pupils at Sir Robert Hitchams Primary School, where she worked."

To donate to the fundraiser, and read more about Zoe, click here.

Zoe Harold (Image: Submitted)