Colson Smith attends CRY screening event in memory of Rory Embling
Chris and Anne Embling have been supporting CRY since the tragic death of their son, Rory. Rory was seemingly healthy, but died due to a heart arrhythmia in 2014 when he was just 26 years old.
The Embling family have raised almost £50,000 and hold screenings in their local area to test young people. On September 15, they held a screening event at Castleford Cricket Club in West Yorkshire.
106 young people attended to have their hearts tested, including Colson Smith, who plays Craig Tinker on ITV’s Coronation Street.
Colson was friends with Rory and is a good family friend of the Emblings. Now, Colson is a loyal supporter of the fundraising and screening events that the Emblings carry out for CRY, and he attended on Sunday to show his support and receive an ECG test himself.
Before the screening event took place, Chris shared how grateful he is for Colson’s support: “We are delighted that Colson – fondly known as Craig to so many of us Corrie fans in Yorkshire and across the UK – is so publicly lending his support to our weekend of screening, as well as taking the wise decision, as a 21-year-old, to be screened himself.”
“Rory was our beloved son and brother, a practicing solicitor, a good sportsman and a great friend,” Anne said. “He left the family home on the 17th May 2014, a seemingly fit and healthy young man, and never returned home. He died as the result of a heart arrhythmia whilst travelling as a passenger in a car to a sporting event in Nottingham. Since then we have been raising money for CRY to fund this amazing opportunity so that other families might be spared the same heartache that we have endured.”
The Emblings want to continue their efforts until a national screening programme is introduced by the Government.
CRY Chief Executive Dr Steven Cox added the following: “I would like to say an enormous thank you to everyone involved with Rory’s Foundation – especially Colson, on this occasion! – for supporting our screening programme and helping us to make expert cardiac testing more accessible to young people both in Yorkshire and throughout the UK.