A GRIEVING family plans to fulfil the last wishes of a young Bournemouth hospital worker who has died at the age of 21.

An appeal was launched by colleagues of Kent Ericta at the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals earlier this month to raise enough money to send him back to his homeland.

Kent, who worked for the trust’s housekeeping department, was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer, Burkitt’s lymphoma, last year.

After being told recently that his condition was terminal, he asked to return to the Philippines, where he grew up.

Sadly his condition took a downturn and he became too ill to travel. He died in ward 11 at the Royal Bournemouth towards the end of last week.

Kent’s family has been settled in Bournemouth for the last six years, but his mother Maria, who also works in housekeeping at the hospital, wants his body repatriated. “I want to give him his last wish. I gave him all my support until his last breath,” she said.

Staff at the hospital have contributed around £2,000 to help with the costs, and the family plans to fly to Manila for a Roman Catholic burial service.

“I am very happy with the hospital staff, including the chief executive,” she said. “They are planning to give Kent a plaque and plant a tree.

“A lot of the staff loved him and they are going to do a service in the hospital when we have the funeral.”