Family’s 24-hour 3-peak feat for children like Jay (From Basildon Recorder)

Family’s 24-hour 3-peak feat for children like Jay

5:00pm Wednesday 5th May 2010 in Echo News By James Colasanti

A FATHER who lost his 12-year-old son to heart disease is taking part in a gruelling mountain-climbing challenge to raise cash for charity.

Danny Waters, 37, will complete the Three Peaks Challenge on May 15, in memory of Jay, who died suddenly last September during a PE lesson.

Mr Waters, a floor tiler from Abbotsleigh Road, South Woodham Ferrers, will climb Snowdon in Wales, Ben Nevis in Scotland and Scafell Pike in the Lake District with his brothers Craig Austin, 32, of Raweth Lane, Raweth, and Steven Austin, 29, of Eastbrooks, Pitsea.

They are raising money for the Cardiomyopathy Association, a charity providing information and support to families affected by the condition which killed Jay.

Jay, a pupil at William de Ferrers School, in South Woodham Ferrers, died from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a heart muscle disease which is the main cause of sudden death in young people, and kills four youngsters in the UK every week. Mr Waters said: “Jay had his whole life ahead of him, and we are all trying to help so others do not have to go through this nightmare.”

The trio is undergoing a gruelling training regime and hope to raise £3,000 by scaling the three mountains within 24 hours.

They have already raised more than £600.

To sponsor them, visit www.justgiving.com/danny- waters, or for information about the charity, visit www.cardiomyopathy.org