Mum of agent Chloe Rutherford pays tribute one year after Manchester attack

The mum of Westoe Travel agent Chloe Rutherford, who died a year ago in the Manchester Arena terror attack, has spoken about her daughter.

Lisa Rutherford told the Shields Gazette she finds herself ‘still looking’ for Chloe, 17, and her boyfriend, Liam Curry, 19, who were among 22 people murdered in the attack on May 22, 2017.

A memorial service is being held in Manchester this morning, which will be attended by survivors, friends and relatives of the victims, as well as Prince William and the Prime Minister. But Chloe and Liam’s families are staying in South Shields where thousands of people are expected to gather outside the town hall to remember the couple.

They’ve been asked to wear items of blue and pink – the colours that symbolise the love the couple represented.

Mrs Rutherford said: "Chloe and Liam loved a selfie. You really don’t understand just how precious pictures like that are until they are no longer here.

"This is where the kids are from, grew up and where they went to school. Their families are here, their friends are here.

"We have no idea how we are going to feel, which is why we wanted to stay and be around the people we love and where we feel loved.

"We are very aware of everything that was going on up here when we were in Manchester. For us to be here and see it for ourselves this time is a lovely way to honour our children."

She added: "The longer it goes on, the realisation they are not coming back starts to become more and more real. I’m still looking for them, it’s like they are away on some journey."

Liam’s mum Caroline said: "We decided a long time ago that we would not be going to Manchester, we said we wanted to stay in South Shields and be around the people who knew Chloe and Liam."

Chloe and Liam had both worked part-time at the Hilton hotel in Gateshead and had been together for three years.

Chloe had been due to take up a full-time apprenticeship with Westoe Travel in South Shields where she had been working part-time for six months.

She had studied music at college, while Liam had been studying a sports degree at Northumbria University.

The parents have set up the Together Forever Trust to help young people who want to make their living in music and sport.

Liam’s mum told the BBC: "The trust gets us up every morning.

"It’s helped us massively. It gives us something to look forward to each day, to help somebody achieve what Chloe and Liam had snatched away."

"The kids aren’t here and what we would really like to do is help others have their dreams and fulfil their aspirations.

"If we could say in a few years’ time that Chloe and Liam’s trust helped them achieve that, it would make us really proud."

Westoe Travel said it will close from 9.45am to 11.15am today as staff attend the town hall event.

The agency posted on its Facebook page today to say: "We are all ready to celebrate Pink and Blue Day in honour of Chloe Rutherford and Liam Curry."