In December 2013 Mark Lawrence, then manager of Hillmorton Old Boy’s FC, died whilst playing for the team. This tragic event deeply affected Mark’s family and everyone involved with the football club. Mark appeared fit and healthy but suffered a sudden cardiac arrest during a game.
To pay tribute to Marks’s life and as a lasting memorial to him, his wife, Joanne, started to raise money to purchase a defibrillator. Had the club owned a defibrillator at the time, Mark would have had a substantially greater chance of survival. Every minute that a cardiac arrest victim is not treated with a controlled shock from a defibrillator their chances of survival reduce by 10%.
Joanne said “we decided to raise funds to purchase a defib to have at every game with us. We had lots of people help us raise money. My sister did the wolf run, we had donations at Mark’s celebration of life and we had a BBQ, but we just could not reach our target we raised £850 and needed £1078.80.”
The Defib Pad received a call from Joanne explaining that she had raised £850 and that she desperately wanted to purchase a defibrillator for the Hillmorton Old Boy’s Football Club in memory of her husband. After hearing her story and that she had contacted lots of companies asking for support, we decided to step in and bridge the gap of £228 for her. “I rang round lots of companies but no help was offered, till finally The Defib Pad offered to help by donating the deficit. Not only have the Defib Pad helped us to own a defibrillator, they have also provided members of the team with training which is vital in a life or death emergency.” Joanne commented “We will forever be thankful.”
Harry Dewick-Eisele, MD of The Defib Pad said “It gives us great pleasure to know that we have helped Joanne reach her goal and that the club now not only have a lasting memory of their past manager, Mark Lawrence, but that they also have a lifesaving piece of kit at their club.”