'Haven Centre might have saved my daughter,' says mother whose family have raised thousands to help the campaign
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Louisa Chisholm was found dead in an Inverness flat, aged just 27. From an early age, she displayed signs of difficult behaviour but although her family repeatedly sought help, she was only diagnosed with ADHD, dyslexia and dyspraxia at the age of 16, by which time she was out of school and self-medicating with alcohol.
Her mother Mhairi has given her backing to the £4 million Haven Appeal which aims to develop a pioneering centre in the city for children and young people with multiple and complex needs.
The aim is to build the Haven Centre on a site at Smithton, providing facilities for people up to the age of 30. As well as respite care, it will include a community café, play centres, garden, meeting rooms and offices.
In a poignant and heartfelt gesture to mark what would have been Louisa’s 30th birthday, Ms Chisholm and partner have raised around £3000 so that others might benefit from the planned project.
Ms Chisholm, of Nairnside, wished the centre had existed for her daughter who, by the time of her death, had been in and out of prison for petty crimes and was self-harming.
She said early intervention, combined with the support and sanctuary which will be offered at the proposed Haven Centre, might have made a difference to her daughter’s outcome.
“Her life was a struggle due to her complex learning difficulties,” said the 46-year-old field officer for the Assessors and Valuation Office.
“It would be nice to think others could benefit from the Haven project. I think it would have made a difference in her life.
“I think the Haven Centre will bring support to people. I like the idea of a community café. That is something which would have been great for Louisa.
“It will be great for young adults in a sheltered environment where they are not being judged. I think sometimes people are not very understanding when someone is struggling.”
Ms Chisholm, who lives with her partner Stephen MacKenzie, their son Finlay (6) and her 12-year-old granddaughter Leah – Louisa’s daughter – wanted to do something to honour Louisa who would have been 30 in July.
She decided to take part in the gruelling Loch Ness Beast Race to raise money for the Haven Appeal launched by the Elsie Normington Foundation and supported by the Inverness Courier to mark the newspaper’s 200th anniversary.
Disaster struck, however, when she broke her ankle shortly before the event.
“I was so disappointed,” she said. “I felt so guilty as I had raised all this money.”
To her relief, Mr MacKenzie (44) gallantly volunteered to do it in her place.
“He was a knight in shining armour,” she said.
Despite her daughter’s tragic death just a week after a doctor warned she would not have long to live if she continued to drink, Ms Chisholm also has positive memories.
“She was always smiling and she cared a lot about others,” she said. “She was very loyal and that sometimes went against her. She would never drop anyone in it. She was bubbly.”
Elsie Normington, chairwoman of the foundation, praised Ms Chisholm for her gesture.
“She has done a positive thing,” she said. “With what has happened, she could have remained in bitterness for the rest of her life.
“But according to a Chinese proverb, it is better to light a candle rather than to curse the darkness.
“Mhairi is lighting a candle for the Haven Appeal and all other parents who might be struggling. I feel very honoured she has chosen the Haven Appeal to honour her daughter.”
