Wife uncovered husband's selfless secret after finding box of letters

A man kept a heroic secret from his wife for years.

Philip King, from Norris Green, saved a child's life around 10 years ago after becoming a stem cell donor. The 35-year-old signed up to the Anthony Nolan Foundation, a UK charity that works in the areas of leukaemia and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

He then found out he was a match for a little boy. Speaking to the ECHO, Philip said: "I was told the mum wanted to speak to me but I asked if it could be anonymous. She wrote me letters which said 'thank you for being our guardian angel. Thank you for saving my child's life'."

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Philip kept these letters in a box which was left in his mum's house after he moved out. One day he and his wife Katherine were going through the boxes when she came across the letters.

Katherine only found out about Philip's selfless act years after it happened. They had been together for around five years at this point.

Philip said: "I just do things for myself, I don't do it for the gratitude or satisfaction. I don't do it for the praise." He added: "I did it because I wanted to do good. I think all the bad things you do in life, if you do a couple of good things this can balance it out."

Katherine urged her husband to enter to become an Olympic torch bearer through Coca-Cola in this year's games in France for his charitable work. Around 5,000 candidates were chosen in a draw out of more than 20,000 nominations, with Philip being one of them.

Philip will fly out to France on Wednesday, June 26 and will take part in the torch relay from Moselle to Yutz in France. Katherine also told her husband to contact the ECHO to share his achievement.

He added: "It's exciting, I will never be an athlete or a major sports person but it is exciting to be part of it. I don't know anyone else who has done it. It's something to tell my kids and grandkids in the future."

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