Grimsby fun run in memory of woman’s sudden cardiac death

A family fun day is taking place to raise money for a heart screening event in memory of a young woman who died suddenly after going into cardiac arrest.

Josephine Chatterton, from Cleethorpes, died when she was 24 in May 1999 from an undiagnosed heart condition that could have been picked up by screening.

The fun run will take place on Sunday from 09:00 until 15:00 BST at King George V Stadium in Grimsby, along with stalls, games, activities, food and drink to raise money for Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY).

Monica Chatterton said her daughter Josephine would have “been fully behind” the campaign.

The run is non-competitive and open to all ages and abilities, with a medal for every participant and all of the £5 entry fee going towards the heart screening event.

The running distance ranges from one lap of the track at 400m up to 12 laps of the track at three miles (4.8km).

Lincs Inspire said it hoped the screening would take place at Grimsby Health and Wellbeing Centre, with the goal to screen 100 local young people.

An inquest found Miss Chatterton died from a rare genetic heart disorder which led to sudden cardiac death.

In May, to mark the anniversary of her daughter’s death, Ms Chatterton said she wanted to raise £6,800 to screen 100 young people in one day in North East Lincolnshire.

Ms Chatterton said: “The sudden loss of a young person shatters families, coming out of the blue with no apparent prior medical warning.

“In memory of Jo, we want to try and alleviate other family’s devastation at losing a young person to a sudden cardiac death.”

Jessica Young from Lincs Inspire said: “This is the first time we’ve held this free family fun day.

“There’ll be something for everyone – an event for the whole community.”