A charity day has raised £17,048 for a West Cumbrian heart screening foundation.
Wath Brow Hornets held the charity match and fundraising day in June to raise money for the Gavin Curwen Heart Screening Foundation.
It saw the Hornets come away with an extra special 28-18 home win over West Bowling and a shirt auction, raffle and entertainment also took place.
The day was supported by several sponsors, with the lead sponsor being William King Construction.
Hundreds of spectators turned up to watch the match, support the day, and help fundraise.
Gavin was a well-loved and admired assistant head coach at the club who died suddenly in 2017 at the age of 40.
His family set up the foundation to keep his memory alive and help prevent other families from losing loved ones in the same way.
They now run heart screening days and have held five so far, where they see approximately 100 people at each event.
Gayle Curwen, Gavin’s sister, who helps run the foundation, said: “Losing Gavin was a massive shock, he was only 40, an ex-rugby player, fit and healthy so we thought.
“It was later found Gavin had heart defects, which had gone undetected.
“After the initial shock of losing him, we decided as a family that we didn’t want another family to go through what we had.
“So in his memory and as a lasting legacy to him, we set up the Gavin Curwen Heart Screening Foundation and our aim initially was to raise enough money to have all the players and members at Wath Brow heart screened.
“Being honest, we never expected that nine years later we’d still be running and getting the support we are.
“It’s unbelievable. We knew Gavin was loved, you’re quite biased because he’s your own, but it’s quite moving now to see how much people still care.”
Gayle said that the charity day was an overall a huge success.
Gayle added: “We had a great day, we cried, we laughed but ultimately we stood proud. The sun was shining and the amount of money raised was phenomenal.
“Gavin’s son Samuel has followed in his dad’s footsteps as he plays the exact same number and position his dad did. It’s lovely to see him play, obviously it was an emotional day for him, but proud, we were all very proud.
“Gavin would have been 50 in February this year and Fran King who is captain, approached my parents to see if it was ok to do something in Gavin’s memory and of course the answer was always going to be yes.
“He suggested the charity day and the team designed a one-off kit to play in.
“Gavin was a Widnes Rugby League fan so they modelled it on an old style retro Widnes kit in the Wath Brow colours.
“There’s still some fundraising events ongoing and we are hoping to get our next screening date in the diary very soon.”
The foundation is run and supported by Gayle, her parents Elsie and John Curwen, Gavin’s partner Lynda Butterworth and his son Samuel Curwen along with Amy Caddy, Ian Rooney, Andrew and Julie Stables.
Gayle said the support the local community and Hornets have shown the family and the foundation over the years has been incredible.
She added the screening days have resulted in some serious referrals with others having been sent for further testing – some of which have required medical interventions such as medication or surgery.
She added: “For us as a family, Wath Brow have been amazing with us and continue to be. I honestly think if we weren’t connected to Wath Brow, it would have been a lot harder.
“We have regular donations from individuals and families who are thankful that we’ve highlighted an issue to them. If you don’t have a symptom, you just assume you’re fit and healthy.
“In addition to the sessions we have purchased over 20 defibrillators that we’ve donated to local schools and sports clubs and we’ve made donations to other fundraisers.
“Wath Brow play in the NCL Premier League and they travel away regularly so we have a portable one now for them to take on the road.
“We have raised in excess of £60,000 over the years. The screening is a very costly but worthwhile event and we would like to keep it going for as long as we possibly can.
“We can’t bring Gavin back but we just want to prevent another family having to go through the same thing we did.”
Hornets coach Ian Rooney said he was very pleased the charity day had a fantastic turnout.
He said: “I would only be able to estimate the crowd as about 700 plus people, it was probably more, the club was packed.
“But we managed to get a victory for him and we tried to use it as inspiration because Gavin and his family are steeped in history with the club.
“It was an entertaining game and the crowd enjoyed it. West Bowling played their part and no inch was given by them, it was a tough game.
“Then it went on to the fundraising where we auctioned off each of the squad members’ shirts and we had phenomenal support. I think the auction alone raised £5,500.
“We all wore bespoke white t-shirts for the day as well and I think they sold 300 of them. That ranged from little tots wearing them to 75-year-olds.
“It’s a very community based club and when you lose someone as young and vibrant as Gavin, it really devastated us. He was a really fun lad who was cruelly taken.
“But his legacy is the foundation and his family were absolutely adamant that his memory would live on in helping other people and the day was all about keeping that going.
“One thing is for sure, his larger-than-life personality has certainly been carried on. It was a very special day.”
Ian added that supporting the foundation means a lot to both him and the team.
He said: “The foundation is really close to my heart, Gavin was my best friend and I lived next door to the Curwen family for 12 years.
“It was vital to his parents John and Elsie, Gayle his sister, Lynda his partner and his son Samuel that his name lives on and his legacy will never go.
“It was a devastating shock losing Gavin, but there’s a small amount of solace in the absolutely tremendous work the foundation has done in raising the profile of heart conditions and defibrillators and saving people.
“Just going back a decade ago you would rarely see defibrillators around. Our own defibrillator has been used at least two times and I was involved in one of the resuscitations and we did save that individual.
“Without that defibrillator, that individual would no longer be with us. The foundation has installed them in dozens of schools and other sports clubs and even rambling areas, there’s one down in Ennerdale where Gavin used to like to walk his dog.
“They went all over the county, so it hasn’t just helped Wath Brow, it’s helped West Cumbria, and make no mistake at all, that foundation has saved people’s lives.”
William King, of William King Construction, said it was a privilege to be lead sponsor of the charity match and day.
He said: “I went all the way through school with Gayle, and Gavin was always there a few years above us as Gayle’s big brother.
“That meant supporting this day was personal for me long before it was about sponsorship.
“Walking into the ground and seeing the players wearing the one-off commemorative shirts, then looking around and seeing so many supporters wearing the replica tops, was a really powerful moment.
“It showed just how many lives Gavin touched and how determined people are to keep his legacy alive.
“It was a real privilege for William King Construction to be the lead sponsor.
“The credit belongs to Gavin’s family, Wath Brow Hornets and every single person who gave their time, donated or simply turned up to show their support.
“Raising more than £17,000 for the Gavin Curwen Heart Screening Foundation is an incredible achievement, and if that helps fund more heart screenings and saves even one life, then that is a legacy everyone involved can be immensely proud of.”
You can find out more about the Gavin Curwen Heart Screening Foundation and ways to support it here.
