When 10-year-old ice skater Jayden Orr collapsed and died on the rink, his family vowed to save as many lives as they could in his memory.
The schoolboy, from Port Glasgow, Inverclyde,was training for the British Championships at Ayrshire’s Auchenharvie Leisure Centre on August 4, 2017, when he went into cardiac arrest and died.
Although it is not known whether a defibrillator would have saved his life, his family made it their mission to get the heart-start kit installed in every school and public building in their local area.
Through their charity Jayden’s Rainbow, the Orrs have provideddefibrillators and specialised training to every secondary school in Inverclyde.
As well as raising funds, the young skater’s mum Kathleen, 43, dad John, 39, sister Kerrilynn, 21, and brother Declan, 19, launched the Show Some Heart Campaign in a bid to get the life-saving equipment installed in all public buildings across Scotland.
Last November, Kathleen took a petition to the Scottish Parliament and a committee are deciding whether defibrillators should be made compulsory in all public centres.
The compassion and life-saving work put in by Jayden’s family has earned them a nomination
in our new Scotland’s Champions awards.
Kathleen said: “Jayden was a beautiful, popular, bubbly little boy, who loved playing practical jokes and making everyone smile. His death has left a big hole in all our lives.
“Setting up the charity and launching the campaign was something we all wanted to do in his memory.
“In the past two years, we have raised more than £30,000 through our Jayden’s Rainbow charity, which has enabled us to provide defibrillators and training to all our local secondary schools, several primaries, an off-licence and a kebab shop.
“Using a defibrillator three to five minutes after an attack can increase chances of survival by 75 per cent.
“If the machines save just one life and stop other families going through the heartache we have endured, all the hard work will be worth it.”
Kathleen says she will never forget the night her son collapsed.
She said: “Jayden started figure skating when he was seven. He was training for the British championships.
“In those three years of skating, he competed seven times. And at all seven competitions, he was on the podium. He loved it.
“It was just a normal night at his training session – he was part of the
Magnum Figure Skating Club. He gave me and his dad a thumbs-up.
And then it was like he just sat down on the ice and that was it – he never recovered. It was
terrifying. We just stood there totally helpless.”
Kathleen hopes her petition will help make defibrillators mandatory in all public buildings.
She said: “I’m hoping the Scottish Government will get on board. We want them to see how
much having defibrillators and giving people training to use them could help others.
“We also want to get training for kids in school so they would know what to do and how to use
a defibrillator and they wouldn’t be scared.
“We are so happy to be nominated for an award because it is another way of keeping
Jayden’s memory alive and raising awareness about the importance of defibrillators.”
• Nominations have now closed. Scotland’s Champions awards ceremony will take place on June 22 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Central Hotel.
