06 June 2016

Team CRY Ireland (Cardiac Risk in the Young) was lead today by Operation Transformation star Clare Scanlan in today’s VHI Mini Marathon.

 

The charity which supports families affected by SADS (Sudden Adult Death Syndrome) welcomed all runners and walkers, from families and friends affected by SADS to members of the public who simply wanted to help and ‘run for CRY’s sake’.

 

Clare Scanlan, a popular leader on Operation Transformation 2016, lost her son Darra aged 16 in 2011 and knows first-hand the work CRY Ireland do, speaking about CRY and the mini marathon today Clare said, “The mini marathon is great fun each year and a great way to keep fit. The money raised for CRY Ireland today will go directly towards helping families like me who have a family member due to SADS. The charity offers support and free screening to families and really relies on donations and fundraising to keep operating. It is a small charity that helps so many people and I am so proud to be here to raise awareness for SADS and CRY. So many families are affected by SADS each year and need all the support they can get.”

 

s the charity’s biggest fundraiser, monies raised from today’s mini marathon will be used to fund the activities of the Centre for Cardiac Risk in Younger Persons (CRYP) in Tallaght Hospital which provides comprehensive cardiac evaluation of those who may be at risk from SCD either because of family history or worrying symptoms.

 

The service provided at the CRYP Centre in Tallaght Hospital is available to anyone in the country (via GP referral) and is free to the patient. The Centre currently receives no direct Government funding. Speaking about CRY and raising funds for the Mini Marathon, Lucia Ebbs Fundraising Manager at CRY said: “This is one of our biggest fundraising events of the year and we depend heavily on this to ensure we can continue to provide the free screening service in Tallaght Hospital. Often smaller charities are forgotten about when it comes to events like this, but luckily for us we have a growing number of supporters each year who help us support up families who have lost a young son, daughter, brother or sister. The funds we raise today will also go towards screening anyone who may have lost a relative to SADS. We are so proud and thankful to everyone who ran the Mini Marathon for CRY Ireland today.”

 

CRY is an Irish registered charity, which was founded in 2002, that supports families who have lost a relative to sudden cardiac death (SCD) and helps raise awareness of the conditions that cause it.

 

For more information see www.cry.ie.