Heartbroken families of murdered Scots open up on support that 'saved their lives'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The families of murdered Scots have told how a lifeline service supported them through their darkest days. The mother of gangland murder victim Lynda Spence and the parents of tragic schoolgirl Amber Gibson are amongst dozens of families fighting to help pull the FAMS charity back from the brink.In today's Record we tell how FAMS (Families Affected by Murder and Suicide) guided those who have lost loved ones to violence through unimaginable grief and, in many cases, saved their lives.

Scores of families are now uniting to save the service amid a funding drought. These are their stories:For many years, Pat Spence blocked out any mention of her daughter’s death, refusing to hear details of how her life was cut short in the most brutal way.Now, while she still refuses to speak the names of Lynda’s killers, she can smile at the memories she shared with her daughter and “best pal”.In 2011, monsters Colin Coats and Philip Wade took Lynda, a 27-year-old unregistered financial adviser, to a house in West Kilbride, Ayrshire, bound her with tape to a chair in the loft and tortured her for two weeks to try to recover cash lost by Coats before killing her.Despite the brutal pair being convicted and serving minimum terms totalling 63 years, for Pat, the nightmare never ends.In recent months she was given hope that Lynda’s body could finally be recovered after police searched a remote spot in Argyll which had been pinpointed by Coats and Wade.Pat - who has battled cancer - was so convinced she could be found she began to plan a funeral.

But the search drew a blank, leaving the family heartbroken.The support she receives from FAMS is helping her cope more than a decade on from Lynda’s murder.Pat said: “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t