Courtney was born on Sunday the 4th of December 1988 at Irvine Central Hospital after an eventful car journey for her parents Glynis and Dave with an impromptu stop on route to fill the car radiator. Her brothers Paul and Stuart (Cooper) were delighted with their new little sister.

Courtney was a smart toddler completing jigsaws and toilet training all before she was three. In late 1991 she started having headaches, sickness and showed a loss of coordination. The G.P. put this down to abdominal migraines, however Glynis was not convinced of this and continued to raise her concerns. Before Courtney could have an MRI scan, she was rushed to Ayr Hospital Accident and Emergency Department where her condition worsened.

Courtney was then transferred to Southern General Hospital in Glasgow for emergency surgery to insert a shunt to alleviate the pressure on her brain. Before the operation Courtney’s parents were told that without the operation today, she wouldn’t be here tomorrow. Courtney was diagnosed as having a Craniopharyngioma – a begin congenital tumour close to the pituitary and hypothalamus.

In March 1992 Courtney had surgery which lasted ten and a half hours to remove the tumour and was later transferred to Yorkhill Hospital in Glasgow. Courtney was a fighter and after nine weeks where she suffered from meningitis and several seizures, as well as having to be resuscitated, she was discharged and returned to her family home in Drongan. Courtney’s hair was shaved, a scar ran from one ear to the other, one eye was completely closed, and she was paralysed down one side.

Her pituitary gland no longer worked. To survive Courtney had to be given all her hormones in some form of medication. Her short term memory was poor. Her vision was impaired because of the pressure on her optic nerve. It took until Courtney was 12 years old before it was confirmed that she was severely visually impaired, to the level that she was registered blind. She could be often seen around the village using her white cane.

Courtney attended Drongan Nursery and Primary School. She struggled with school but loved spending time with her primary one teacher Mrs McGradie sitting on her knee or sleeping on the bean bag. Recently Mrs McGradie commented that she was “a wee bright light in this world.”

Courtney struggled at mainstream school as she felt different, and her mental wellbeing suffered. This started a fight to get her into appropriate education which included extensive lobbying by her parents which led to her going to Park School followed by a mixed placement with the Grange, then after more fighting a place at the Royal Blind School in Edinburgh.

Courtney was at her happiest there even although she had to stay away from home. She made good friends, including Luke, Rory and Derrick and continued to make lasting memories with them after leaving school.

After leaving school Courtney returned home but struggled to find suitable opportunities. She attempted several volunteer options and college courses, but Courtney came up against many barriers, such as excessive restrictions to equipment and areas, all of which made her feel different to others.

Courtney then employed personal assistants through self-directed support, giving her more independence and workers that were trained to meet her needs. This really helped Courtney increase her confidence and she was then able to attend more activities. She was regularly seen out and about around Drongan and on the bus to Ayr, where she could be found chatting away to the other passengers.

The support from Rita, Kathryne and Ally from the visual impairment team in East Ayrshire really helped Courtney. Ally in particular, made a huge difference to her. He understood the biggest disability for Courtney was her memory and worked with her to alleviate this and increase her independence. Courtney came up with the idea of taking photos throughout her routes to help remember them. Ally could really see Courtney’s potential and tried to link her to suitable volunteering opportunities.

Courtney was happy to get an opportunity to volunteer at the library in Drongan which she absolutely loved. She was able to use her computer skills to help and make friends with others from her community. Courtney felt included and valued here and was heartbroken when the library closed and her volunteering came to an end.

Courtney was always determined to have her own house and in 2016; after having to contact her local councillor, she was given a property in Watson Terrace. She enjoyed having her own home and was able to maintain it with help from family and her personal assistants. She latterly stayed in Lane Crescent. This gave her an extra bedroom, which she transformed into her craft room, this room also gave the option of an overnight stay to others when needed.

Courtney always loved her arts and crafts and spent hours making cards for everyone’s birthday and other occasions. For special occasions Courtney always made the person a scrapbook of photos using her crafting skills in decoupage and design. We will always treasure these.

Courtney had a great love of nature, she enjoyed feeding, listening to the birds and identifying each bird’s song. A love she shared and learned from her Papa. She also enjoyed nature walks and car trips around the local fields to count the horses.

Courtney passed away suddenly in her sleep on 10th January 2025. She had suffered an epileptic seizure although she wasn’t been treated for them. Courtney had been previously diagnosed with non-epileptic seizures. These had got worse over the years resulting in several injuries.

Courtney gave so much to everyone. She was kind, always thinking of others and showed empathy beyond her years. She was quick witted, with a real sense of humour and would always call a spade a spade.

Courtney couldn’t see her worth and how much she gave and taught us. We hope that by reading this you will see, that despite the hand life had dealt Courtney she still found time to spread love and kindness. A valuable lesson to us all.

The following are quotes we were sent by people that knew Courtney:

“She was the warmest, kindest, most thoughtful, honest person to have around”

“She was such a kind and caring girl”

“Courtney was loved my everyone who’s life she touched”

“I know I am a better person for having her in my life”

We will always be grateful for the extra 33 years we were given with Courtney but wish it could have been longer. As a family, we wish all the love and kindness Courtney showed to continue, we would like to encourage you to carry this on in her memory.

Courtney will be loved and missed forever.