Heartfelt tributes have been paid to the mum of a two-year-old boy who has died suddenly at the age of 29.
Kirsty Perkins, of Mirfield, was social and digital lead at Brighouse-based Faith PR and her death has shocked colleagues.
Kirsty, who worked for the company for seven years, was married to Shaun and had a son Casey, who was born with cystic fibrosis.
Stefanie Hopkins, founder and managing director at Faith PR, described Kirsty as a “much-loved, talented, loyal and valued member of staff who made an impression from day one when she joined as an intern in 2014.”
Stefanie said Kirsty quickly grew to become an important member of the team who forged a unique role for herself, taking the lead on the social media and digital side of the business.
“We have been inundated with condolences and messages from Kirsty’s clients, colleagues, friends and contacts – some of whom worked with her seven years ago, which is testament to the impression she made on people.
“As a team, we are struggling to comprehend that she has gone. Kirsty was beautiful with a brilliant sense of humour.
“Kirsty is simply irreplaceable and we will miss her so very much but her legacy at Faith will always live on. Our thoughts and love go out to her family.”
Account director Tom Coates described Kirsty as a pillar of strength and reassurance and said: “In my two spells working with Kirsty, I learned an absolutely incomprehensible amount from her. Her knowledge and toughness were incredible and humbling to behold.
“Alongside Stefanie and Carl Hopkins, she has been a major part of why Faith is what it is today, and instrumental in its success, while others have come and gone.
“She has vocally championed junior members of staff, including those with us now, and has been a brilliant mentor to so many who’ve come through these doors. I’ve seen their development under her guidance with my own eyes.
“What Kirsty stood for, what she achieved and who she was shines brighter and leaves a lasting impact.”
Faith’s office manager Nicole Jowett worked with Kirsty from her first day as an apprentice in 2015. “I didn’t have a clue what I was doing,” said Nicole. “But I have Kirsty to thank for a big part of where I am today and a lot of what I’ve learned is down to her. We often joked that we’d both worked at Faith so long, we’d become part of the furniture.
“I knew I could always rely on her to give me honest advice, to help me when something wasn’t working, a second pair of eyes when something didn’t quite look right or to teach me something new (and to tell me to stop stressing).
“Even if she didn’t have the answer, she’d always try her best to help, even if she was busy herself.
“I can only hope that she knew how much help she was to myself, and all of us at Faith, and how much we loved her.”
A JustGiving page has been set up to raise money for Casey. The JustGiving page says: “Kirsty was a special person – independent and of strong opinions that everyone should be treated the same way. She died suddenly leaving her husband Shaun and Casey her two-year-old son.
“Although he has cystic fibrosis Kirsty was determined that he had the same experiences as any other little boy. We will continue to fulfil her wishes and any donations, in lieu of flowers, will go towards helping Casey’s future adventures.”
Around £2,000 has been raised so far. DONATE HERE.
A post-mortem is to be carried out and no funeral arrangements have yet been confirmed.