Gemma Atkinson left crying over stranger's sweet gesture in memory of her late dad

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Gemma Atkinson has shared how she was left in tears when a stranger messaged her to share what they wanted to do in memory of her late dad. The Hits Radio host lost her dad, David, when she was 17.

David died in 2002 from a heart attack and Gemma, now 37, has previously spoken about how her dad's colleague found him hunched over his desk, struggling to breathe or move, as he was having a heart attack. Gemma told Steph's Packed Lunch in June last year that within a few days they were told her dad was OK and put it down to stress and told him to slow down.

However, as the family prepared for him to come, the hospital called and said David had a massive heart attack in his sleep and sadly passed away. On April 27 this year, Gemma marked 20 years since his tragic death, sharing an old clip with her millions of followers.

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The sweet clip shows the former soap star as a child in a pretty dress with long white socks and fluffy pink boots. She's holding their pet pooch before accidentally letting her fall out of her arms. Alongside the clip, she shared: "20 years ago today you passed away Dad. That’s 7,300 days of missing you being here physically but knowing you’re always with me in some way.

She added: "I miss you every single day and I love you dearly. To anyone who’s experienced the loss of a parent, I understand your pain. Know that it does get easier, and in time you’ll be able to talk about them and smile, even laugh perhaps. It won’t always be tears, I know that much."

On Tuesday, Gemma, who is a supporter of the British Heart Foundation, took to Instagram to wish those running the London Marathon on behalf of the charity