Annie, or Jae as they were known to their friends, came to Centrepoint after experiencing family difficulties. Despite a sometimes-strained relationship, Annie and their family remained close. Annie tragically passed away just a week before their 21st birthday due to complications from hypothyroidism, a condition they were diagnosed with as a teenager.
In their memory, their parents asked for donations to be put towards something that would support the young people staying at Highfield Terrace and create a legacy for Annie. Annie’s key worker, Paul and Liz, Highfield’s Service Manager, came up with the idea of an outdoor communal space that would benefit young people going forward and created ‘Annie’s Annex’ to recognise and celebrate their life.
Struggles and triumphs
From a young age, Katie says that Annie struggled to connect with their peers. They exhibited traits associated with autism and, with Centrepoint’s support, they were seeking a formal diagnosis before they passed away. Despite these challenges, they possessed a fierce loyalty to those they cared about. It was during their later teenage years that Annie discovered their tribe—a group of neurodivergent and LGBTQ+ friends who understood them, and with whom they truly connected.
Around this time, Annie came out as bisexual and later as transgender. Many of their friends called them Jae, a name their family learned about only after their death. Katie expressed a wish that Annie had felt comfortable enough to share this part of their identity with her. “Although Annie presented to me as Annie and she/her, to others they presented as Jae and they/them. We made sure that we acknowledged that at the funeral service.”
Annie's exploration of their identity reached a key milestone when they attended their first Pride event, proudly dyeing their hair like a rainbow; an act symbolic of their self-acceptance.
Hypothyroidism
Annie's health condition added another layer of complexity to their life. They lived with an underactive thyroid, which caused significant physical and emotional challenges. The condition affected their bowel and bladder, leading to severe fatigue and embarrassment, particularly in school settings, and often left them feeling isolated. "Annie was bullied a lot at school. It was really difficult for them, and they felt a lot of shame relating to their condition. People find it hard to talk about it because it’s about poo and it’s often misdiagnosed, which is why sharing Annie’s story and raising awareness is so important," Katie explains.
Annie's desire for a normal teenage life often conflicted with their health needs. Their medication meant they always needed to be near a toilet and, in striving for some normality, they would sometimes skip doses. This could lead to severe complications and eventually led to a bowel rupture and their premature passing.
Katie explains that managing Annie’s condition became increasingly difficult as they got older. Katie also has a younger daughter with autism and severe learning difficulties who needed constant care.
“Annie and I would often clash around their medication, and they also found it extremely challenging being at home with their sister. As they reached their mid-teens, it became like a tinderbox in the house. There just wasn’t the emotional capacity to deal with everything they were both going through. Annie was also showing autistic traits and things reached breaking point. They would often stay with their partner for increasingly longer periods and in the end, we decided together that it made more sense for them to move out.”
“However, I knew that their condition meant that they would need support. We contacted the housing department together and they referred them to Centrepoint. It meant a lot to know that they would be safe and supported with workers there that would help guide them. It was the best we could have hoped for.”
Support from Centrepoint
At Centrepoint, Annie had the support of their key worker Paul who they could go to whenever they needed support. Katie says the support they received whilst living there was the making of them.
“Annie was in a really good place at the time of their passing. They were ready to take off. I was so proud of them. They had no debts, no loans, no credit cards. They had found their tribe and they had become mature and independent. I can’t thank the staff enough for what they did to support them.”
Service manager, Liz remembers Annie fondly. “They were a quiet, unassuming young person but once they’d got to know staff, they would spend time chatting in the office. Annie was known for their ever-changing hair colour and when I saw the aura borealis recently, I thought of Annie.”
Fundraising for Annie’s Annex
It was important for Katie to honour Annie’s legacy in a meaningful way. She channelled her grief into fundraising for Annie’s Annex, a communal space for residents at Centrepoint and something that the service Annie lived in lacked.
“My mum passed away a few months before Annie did. Annie was really close to her and had a tattoo of some yellow roses, their nan’s favourite flowers. When my mum got cancer, Annie helped me to care for her. It’s fitting therefore that some of the Annie’s inheritance from my mum goes towards creating a legacy for Annie.
The idea for Annie’s Annex came from a conversation with the service manager Liz and together they decided that creating a communal space that other residents could benefit from would be a fitting legacy.
“Annie wasn’t old enough to have produced a legacy,” Katie says, tearfully. “They didn’t have children and they were just about to spread their wings and fly into adulthood. They will always be remembered by us of course, but now they will have a legacy at the service that helped them. They will have a plaque and a photo with their story. It’s more than I could have ever dreamed of. I couldn’t think of a better way to square the circle.”
Katie shares her hopes for this story: “I want Centrepoint to be celebrated for their amazing work, and I want to raise awareness about Annie’s condition. It’s often ignored, but if one person gets diagnosed then something good has come from our loss.”
In closing, Katie highlights the symbolism of Annie’s rainbow hair. “It represents Pride, but for us as a family who have lost so much over the past few years, it’s about finding the rainbow after the storm. We always try to find something positive in the hardest time. Annie’s Annex is the rainbow after the storm and whenever we see a rainbow, we think of Annie. I am grateful to have had them in my life for the time that I did.”
