WHEN Brian Berry was given weeks to live after being diagnosed with cancer, he wrote each member of his family a letter which he asked them to read after he had died.
Her husband's last words were among Patricia Berry's most treasured possessions and she took them everywhere she went.
Until, that is, her two letters were stolen when her car was broken into while Mrs Berry was at a Croydon gym days before Christmas.
The thieves also took a laptop, medical equipment and £500 in cash but Mrs Berry and her daughter Katie are only concerned about the notes.
"They told me to have the strength to go on so I kept them with me," said Mrs Berry, 59.
"To hell with everything else, I just want the letters back."
Mrs Berry, a self-employed chiropodist, was swimming at LA Fitness in Purley Way at 2.55pm on December 22 when she was informed by a member of staff that her Toyota Yaris had been broken into.
The thieves, two men riding bikes, had used a stone to break through a back window and then reached into the boot by lifting the parcel shelf.
The pair took two bags, one containing a piece of medical equipment and another containing takings from Mrs Berry's business, a laptop and the letters, which were in an envelope headed: "To my dearest Patsy."
Mr Berry, 83, had written the letters after he was diagnosed with cancer in 2011.
He left them in a drawer of his desk and they were found after he died by his wife of nearly 25 years.
Mrs Berry, of Hamilton Way, Wallington, said: "One of the letters starts by saying: 'When you open this I will be gone'. He was diagnosed with cancer and was told he had four weeks to live. The letters were his last words to each of us. They told me to have the strength to go on.
"There have been so many burglaries around where we live recently it's not safe to leave anything at home. I felt the letters were safer with me.
"I never, for one moment, thought someone would take them."
Mrs Berry's letters, which were attached to a poem written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, were written on headed paper which included her address.
"The people who broke into my car would have no way of knowing the letters were there or how important they are to me," she said.
Addressing those responsible directly, she added: "I don't care about the other items or the money, but please return the letters."
Katie, 25, said: "Everything else they took is replaceable but my dad's not going to come back from the dead and write another letter.
"My mum has been unwell for most of her life and my dad was her rock.
"Losing him was heartbreaking. Their dog died not that long ago, so it feels like what they had together is disappearing.
"Those letters are priceless and I would urge anyone who knows where they are to help return them."
Police are investigating the break-in and anyone with information is urged to call Waddon Safer Neighbourhoods Team on 020 8649 3512.
