Trio run in memory of 'a really nice guy'

Bereaved family take strength from son's good friends

The parents of a Barry teenager, who are still awaiting to hear the cause of their son’s death, have said a heartfelt thank-you to his friends who have raised well over £1,000 for the charity CRY.

Chef James Dougherty, 18, of Richard Street, fell asleep and died in his bedroom on February 13.

Post-mortem examinations have failed to determine the cause of his death.

James’ father, Richard Dougherty, 47, said: “We moved to Barry from Manchester in 1987.  We are just overwhelmed by the response of James’ friends how many good friends he made in the short time he was here and we would like to say a heartfelt thank-you to all of them for their support and compassion.

Jonathon Ashton, Chris Morgan and Bradley Hughes, last month completed a 10-mile charity run from Cardiff to Barry in memory of their friend James as part of a series of events to raise money for CRY.

Bradley Hughes said: “James was just a genuinely nice guy.  He was one of the lads and loved having a good time.  We all really miss him.”

James’ father Richard said: “We have been told that it could take until as long as next February before the cause of death is established.  Of course it’s not going to bring James back, but we need to know the cause of death to put our minds at rest.

“The coroner’s officer told us that there are around eight deaths like this in the Vale each year.

“We believe that our son’s death could have been prevented.  We are now supporting the charity CRY which supports medical research into sudden cardiac death and helps fund nationwide screening programmes.”

To date CRY has donated over £400,000 worth of cardiac equipment for use in GP surgeries, cardiac wards and Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments. 

More than 500 young people die every year from Sudden Death Syndrome, an umbrella term used for the different causes of heart attacks in the young.

But CRY’s founder Alison Cox believes there could be many more teenagers and young adults dying from this silent killer.

She said: “The official figure is just the start.  A lot of deaths are incorrectly attributed to accidents.”