A north-east police officer who died only three months after she was diagnosed with cancer was “beautiful on the outside, but even more beautiful on the inside”.
Mother-of-two Amanda Lawson, from Newmachar, died in Aberdeen the day after her 36th birthday.
Last night, her husband Deane said the Grampian Police officer was “unbelievably brave” in the face of her illness, but said he and his daughters Emma, four, and Eden, one, were “devastated” by her loss.
Mr Lawson, 38, of Buchan Drive, Newmachar, said it had been his wife’s lifetime ambition to join the police and described her as a “committed officer”.
“She worked so hard and loved her job – she said taking medical retirement, which she only did two days before she died, was one of the hardest things she’s ever done,” he said.
Mr Lawson said he was in “shock and disbelief” when his Dundee-born wife was diagnosed with cancer in July. Doctors could not identify the primary cancer, but it spread to her liver and her lungs despite chemotherapy, and she died on October 27.
Mr Lawson, who is originally from Grantown and also works with Grampian Police, said his wife was also a devoted mother.
“She wrote a diary during her illness, and wrote about our lives together and her hopes and dreams for the girls,” he said.
“She wrote that when Eden was born she felt complete – she lived for the kids, and they adored her.” Mr Lawson said his wife enjoyed modelling when she was younger, and reached the latter stages of both the Miss Scotland and Miss Flower of Scotland competitions.
“She was beautiful on the outside and had a wonderful smile, but she was even more beautiful on the inside,” he said. “She was such a warm and friendly person, she was always happy and had this ability to put people at ease straight away.”
Mr Lawson said his wife always put others before herself, and even organised her own funeral so he would not have to go through the pain of making the arrangements.
He added his wife’s attention also turned to raising money for the Cancer Research UK charity, and more than £8,000 was raised through donations via the internet and at a celebration of her life, which was held on Thursday and attended by more than 600 people.
He also thanked the support and fundraising efforts of colleagues at Grampian Police, and said fellow officers paid for the family to take a holiday to Paris before Mrs Lawson died.
Grampian Police’s Aberdeen division commander chief superintendent Adrian Watson described Mrs Lawson as an “enthusiastic, capable and highly-respected officer”, and said she would have had a “bright future” in the police service.
Mrs Lawson also leaves behind her mother, Winnie Strachan, and brother Adam McNamara. Donations can still be made to Cancer Research UK through Mrs Lawson’s internet site on www.justgiving.com