Speaking at a recent ceremony to receive funds raised locally on behalf of Cardiac Risk in the Young, NI Representative John Lundy said he was overwhelmed at the messages of support he has received since the recent television programme about his son.
'After Aaron' resulted in an unprecedented level of calls to book screenings in the Cardiac Risk in the Young November clinic.
Mr Lundy said he was greatly encouraged by the generosity of local people who have helped raised over £35,000 for CRY through two recent events.
The funds included monies raised by a team of Aaron's friends who participated in the Belfast Marathon and from the Aaron Lundy Golf Day held at Portstewart in September, featuring Graeme McDowell.
John said: "For Aaron's Golf Day and Dinner and the Marathon to fundraise this tremendous amount of money for Cardiac Risk in the Young is unbelievable and on behalf of CRY I offer my sincere thanks to everyone who contributed, sponsored the event, attended the dinner, took part in the Auction or participated in the marathon race.
"I would particularly thank Graeme McDowell for his time and his generosity and for agreeing to become a CRY Patron.
"When the idea for the Golf match and dinner to honour Aaron was first discussed, our main priority was to ensure that Aaron's memory was honoured and that we would have a great day that he would have been proud of. The funds raised are an added bonus and that is fantastic.
"Every year Aaron's friends organise a football match and a game of golf to remember him and that has always been a source of great comfort to us and we will never forget it. This year it was an added bonus when Graeme agreed to take part in a golf match with David Jones, Paul Cutler and Alan Dunbar.
"I would pay particular tribute to Garry McGrotty for organising the day's activities; the fact we raised £3,600 shows the energy he brought to the task.
"These valuable funds will go towards supporting and promoting cardiac screening in Northern Ireland. The tragedy is that young people are still dying from undiagnosed cardiac conditions and we firmly believe these deaths are avoidable by widespread screening.
"Just this week I spoke to another mother who has lost her daughter since we held this Golf Day in memory of my son Aaron. that is the stark reality and tragedies like that mean we will continue to promote Cardiac Screening.
"Once again I thank everyone who took part in the event for their generosity, their time and their kind words of support."
