Calvin and Debbie Clarke lost their 24-year-old daughter Lucy to a rare lung condition in April. They told reporter MICHAEL PURTON how their religious belief has helped them cope.

Just hours before she died on April 7, Swanley resident Lucy Clarke sent a text message to her friends and family urging them to remain positive as they mourned for her.

The Christian described feeling the presence of Jesus next to her as her life was slipping away, writing: “I was washed over with reassurance and love. Trust in Him was his message."

This message provided great comfort to her parents because it let them know Lucy was in safe hands and that they would see her again.

Her father Calvin, 53, said: “Our faith gives us hope because the bible tells us there is more to life than this, there is an afterlife, and I believe that one day we will see Lucy again.”

The TV researcher’s death came after a two-year battle with pulmonary hypertension (PH), a rare lung condition that puts intense strain on the heart.

Calvin and Debbie, of Philip Avenue in Swanley, have now spent almost eight months without their daughter, and they say their faith has been vital in helping them cope.

Debbie, 51, said: “You have to hold on to something when you have experienced a loss and that’s my faith.

“My faith helps me to focus on the positives, which are that I had a daughter for 24 years.”

Calvin says he did question God’s decision to take Lucy away, but her text message strengthened his faith and encouraged him to find positives in her death.

Along with Lucy’s family and friends, Calvin and Debbie have done that by raising around £13,000 for the charity Pulmonary Hypertension Association (PHA), which supports people with PH and their families.

Calvin said: “Our way of coping is doing projects to raise money for PHA, which remind us that Lucy is at the centre of everything we are doing.”

And the Clarkes believe their charity work and support from friends, family and church will help them to move forward with their life.

Debbie said: “We have just had to understand that life does go on and you have to find a way to go on too, otherwise PHA has taken our lives as well as hers, and Lucy would not want us to give up.”

For more detail on PH and fundraising, go to phassociation.uk.com