Nearly a year ago my partner of 8 years, Alan, died whilst running the Wilmslow Half Marathon. It was his 31st birthday. His death was unexpected and sudden. In a matter of minutes, everything changed forever.

Alan had a fantastic life ahead of him – his career as a solicitor was showing great promise, we had recently bought our first house together which we were renovating and we had plans to have a family in the future. Our life together which we had spent so many years building, was completed shattered. Accepting and coming to terms with the loss of Alan and our future is extremely difficult and at times it feels like an impossible task.

Alan was extremely sporty and had played rugby and football since childhood. In recent years he had taken up running and we participated in many 10k and half marathon races. Alan had many talents and was such a kind hearted person. He had good looks, charm, intelligence, sporting prowess and yet the best part about him was that he was absolutely and completely modest. He was a true gentleman.

The things that were most important to Alan were family, friends, work, rugby and Liverpool FC (not necessarily in that order!).

Alan died on 3 April 2016. On 2 April 2017 (weather permitting) I am going to skydive from 14,000 feet with Skydive Northwest in Cumbria to raise money for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY). CRY is a charity which provides bereavement support to the families of someone under 35 years old who has suffered a sudden cardiac death. CRY also undertake research, offer heart screening to young people and support young people diagnosed with a heart condition. Their campaign centres around the fact that every week in the UK 12 apparently fit and healthy young people die suddenly from undiagnosed heart conditions. Alan was one of them. #12AWeek

According to CRY 80% of young sudden cardiac deaths occur with no prior symptoms.

I want to do all I can to stop another young sudden death and to prevent families and loved ones from suffering the loss, trauma and prolonged pain I have experienced during the past year. Alan was so precious to me. The impact of his death is profound and indescribable. At 30 years old I found myself alone and experiencing an overwhelming grief that I never thought was possible to get through.

I wish to raise awareness of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS) (which I wasn’t aware of before Alan’s death) and undiagnosed heart conditions and to highlight the importance of preventative action, such as heart screening, to reduce the number of people who lose their lives at such a young age.

I would appreciate any donation you can make to honour Alan’s memory and to show support to CRY and the work they undertake. It would mean so much to me. Please note that I have paid for the skydive myself so all money donated will go to CRY (minus any Just Giving fee).

Thank you so much

By supporting CRY you will help save young lives from these potentially fatal cardiac conditions. See how your support can help by visiting www.c-r-y.org.uk