HER nickname was ‘Rae of light’ for being the life and soul of every party.

So when Rachel ‘Rae’ Hayes was diagnosed with cancer for the second time, she dealt with the devastating news the only way she knew – by partying.

Despite battling the disease and losing her hair, the mum-of-two lifted her friends and family’s spirits by reaching for a bottle of bubbly and her high heels and throwing a party every week. She even once kept her IV bag in a leopard print handbag.

But there was one date in her calendar she was counting down to – ‘the biggest party in town’.

Along with her best friend, Deborah Talliadoros, she had planned everything, from the Michael Jackson tribute act and the cocktail menu to the outfit she’d wear and who she hoped would buy one of the 450 tickets.

However Rachel’s health deteriorated and she died on New Year’s Eve aged just 52.

“Rachel died on the biggest party night of the year, but then, that really was Rachel’s style,” said Deborah, 52, a hairdresser.

Testament to her fun-loving spirit though, the party will still go on, and her loved ones are determined it will raise thousands for Cancer Research UK in her honour.

Deborah, from Locks Heath, said: “Losing Rae was a sad day for all who knew her, but the biggest party of all will still go on as she would have wanted. I can’t think of a more fitting tribute to her as she loved parties and we get to celebrate her life as well.

“Rae always said that life was for living.

“And she taught me that you should always have something in your diary to look forward to.”

Rachel, who leaves behind her two daughters, Rebecca, 27 and Charlotte, 24, two-year-old granddaughter Ruby and husband Peter – who she ran Banks Bar Bistro with, was first diagnosed with breast cancer the day before her daughter Rebecca’s wedding in 2011, but she kept the news to herself because she didn’t want to ruin the day.

Rachel, from Burridge, was still having regular check-ups when she started suffering from pain in her stomach and her chest.

At first, reflux and gall stones were suspected, however a scan and tests revealed the cancer had spread to her liver. The couple asked the consultant not to give them a prognosis.

But according to her daughters, Rebecca and Charlotte, nothing would get her down.

Daily Echo:

L-r Rebecca Cordwell, Benji, Charlotte Hayes, Deborah Talliadoros and Ruby Cordwell

“Mum would always see the positives in any situation and try to make people laugh, even when she was undergoing tests in hospital she would be posing for the camera and making light of the situation,” said Charlotte.

“In between her chemo sessions she had a week where she would feel a bit better, so we would throw a party at home for her every Friday night, with different themes, like odd shoes, wigs or shower caps.

“It gave her something to focus on and look forward to each week.”

Deborah, who met Rachel 20 years ago when she first cut her hair, said regardless of how ill she became, she would carry on with her normal life.

“And that included partying,” she explained.

“She was the only woman I know who would turn up to hospital in a pair of elegant heels and celebrate after each appointment with a glass of the finest champagne.

“The day Rachel was diagnosed with liver cancer she went out to buy a pair of red stilettos and wore them out of the shop.

"She did the same when she was undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She would answer the door in her tight jeans and heels and she had her IV bag hidden in a leopard print handbag over her arm.

“Everybody has a story to tell about Rae. When you came to visit her, she raised your spirits, not the other way round.”

Today her loved ones believe she kept positive for the sake of her family, especially her granddaughter little Ruby.

“We had booked for us all to go and see Father Christmas with Ruby on the Watercress Line in December,” explained Rebecca.

“Mum wasn’t well and I kept thinking she wouldn’t be able to go.

“But when the day came around, she was up and dressed. She was so determined to go – to be able to make memories for all of us. That’s how much we meant to her, how much her family meant to her. She always put us first and she never gave up.”

Deborah added: “She loved her family so much. Pete was her best friend, her soul mate. She just loved life. Rachel was an incredibly unique person – she really was a ray of light to everyone.

“A couple of days before she died, Pete called the ambulance to take her to hospital and Rachel was determined to put her boots on to go to the hospital, she wouldn’t wear her slippers, and in the ambulance she was topping up her make-up!”

Daily Echo:

Rachel Hayes

The party called Let’s Groove Tonight takes place on Saturday, March 7 at Club 1865 in Southampton.

Tickets have now sold out, and so far £6,000 has been raised, but people can still donate to the charity, which hopes that its research will mean that three out of four people will survive cancer within the next 20 years – instead of the two in four that survive today.

Deborah said: “There was just something about Rae, every time you saw her you just lit up. You knew you were going to have a good time, so it had to be a party.

"But Rachel was meant to have been there – she was really looking forward to it and kept saying that she had her ticket and was counting down the weeks until the day arrived.

“The positivity she had as she continued to fight her cancer right up until the very last day was amazing, so how could we give up now?

“We cannot let it beat us. We have to carry on fighting.”

  • To donate to Cancer Research UK on Rachel’s behalf, go to justgiving.com/Deborah-Talliadoros, or to find out more about Let’s Groove Tonight, visit: letsgroovetonight.eventbrite.co.uk