My name is Jack Yates and my partner is Nicole Ditchfield. Let us take a minute to tell you about our beautiful little boy, Luca Yates.

Luca was born on 23 January 2022 and unfortunately after a healthy pregnancy there were some complications in labour, resulting in Nic needing an emergency C-Section. In 12 minutes Luca was here, but unfortunately he wasn’t breathing. They spent 40 minutes resuscitating him but unfortunately his brain went too long without oxygen. We made the difficult decision at 1.29am, on 24 January to remove his ventilator.

From then we were told that he may pass within a few minutes, but the amazing little boy that he is, he managed to give me and his mummy an extra 8 whole hours with him. We are so proud of our little fighter.

We plan on doing many fundraisers in memory of Luca and would appreciate your support in whatever way you can.

He was strong for us for the whole of his short life, so we will be strong for him for the rest of ours.

This will be Luca’s Legacy.

Playing hockey is one of the few things that got me through dealing with the loss of Luca, so I am so grateful for all teams involved in the Luca Yates Memorial Tournament.

One of the charities that has helped us and many people who have gone through similar situations is Reuben’s Retreat.

Reuben’s Retreat was founded in August 2012, just 2 days after Reuben Graham died aged just 23 months old. His Mummy Nicola created the charity to help others who are facing or already dealing with similar heartbreak, walking side-by-side with families offering emotional and practical support for parents and siblings bereaved of a child and for families of life limited or threatened children who face uncertain futures.

To find out more about this incredible charity, please visit their website www.reubensretreat.org or social media channels.