The family of a man who died after a cardiac arrest have donated to a "vitally important" fund to buy defibrillators.
A donation of £9,000 has been made to the Provost’s Community Defibrillator Fund by the family of Alex Leckie, who sadly passed away aged just 52, during a round of golf.
The fund will allow donations for public access defibrillators (PADs) projects to be collected and to raise awareness of life-saving skills including CPR and how to use a defibrillator.
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Alex’s wife, Angela, is determined to do all she can to raise awareness of cardiac arrest and ensure a legacy from her husband’s death by supporting the roll-out of more lifesaving defibrillators across the area.
Angela, who lives in Busby, East Renfrewshire said: “Alex had a stent fitted four months before he passed away following a previous cardiac arrest, but following that procedure, he’d been in good health and we’d been told there should be no further concerns.
"The day Alex passed away started as an ordinary day. He’d been out working in the garden and then headed off to golf with my son and son-in-law.
"He was feeling fine and really looking forward to getting to golf. I then got a call from my son-in-law and I knew immediately that something terrible had happened. I rushed to the golf club to find he’d collapsed whilst out on the course.
"One of the club’s staff was performing CPR on him and I took over and we tried tirelessly for more than 30 minutes, and the club’s defibrillator had also been used as we tried to bring him back.
"The paramedics arrived and continued to work on him for a long time before telling us that he’d passed away and there was nothing more they could do.”
The family held their memorial ball in 2022 and were left “completely gobsmacked” with the £9,000 raised. Work is now ongoing to organise another fundraising event next year, and the family plan to donate all money raised to the East Renfrewshire Provost’s Community Defibrillator Fund.
Provost Mary Montague has taken on the role of the Council’s Defibrillator Community Champion as she looked to work closely with communities, businesses and local stakeholders to promote the initiative.
The Provost said: “With personal experience of losing a family member following a cardiac arrest, this is a cause very close to my heart.
"For every minute it takes for a defibrillator to reach someone and deliver a shock, their chances of survival reduce by up to 10%."
As well as the Provost’s Community Defibrillator Fund being launched, an additional two PADs are already set to be installed at Maidenhill Primary and Kirkhill Primary.
This will bring the number of defibrillators at council-owned buildings to 28 and increase the number of machines across East Renfrewshire on the British Heart Foundation database to 82.
For more information about the Provost’s Community Defibrillator Fund, contact communications@eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk.
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