AS our Heart of the Community campaign gets into full swing, Reporter Callum Hodgson talks to Wendy Brown about local charity Avril’s Trust, set up in memory of her sister.

AVRIL Brown was just 35 years old when she died.

The mum-of-two suffered a cardiac arrest at her Hawick home in 2013.

Her daughters Sarah and Emily were just five and three at the time.

But, just a year after her death, Avril’s family members turned their attentions to helping others by setting up a charity in her name.

“We wouldn’t want anybody to go through what we went through, losing Avril so young,” said Avril’s sister Wendy.

“It was just a real shock. At the time we were so unaware that this could happen to someone who is 35 years old.

“Anyone can have a heart attack. That’s why we set up the trust in 2014 – so we could make sure there are defibrillators all around the Borders.”

As the Border Telegraph reported when we launched our Heart of the Community campaign, the Borders is already the Scottish capital for surviving cardiac arrests.

And Avril’s Trust has played a major role in getting the statistics where they are today.

Since 2014, survival rates have soared from four per cent to 29 per cent (the Scottish-wide figure is 16 per cent). But we want to go one better and see the region become the world leader.

Sweden and Seattle currently top the table with 30 per cent.

Along with our sister paper the Peeblesshire News, we’re teaming up with local groups and individuals to spread the word – raising cash and awareness.

We want to see a defibrillator in every community – to make sure every part of the region is covered should someone suffer a cardiac arrest.

Wendy added: “We have seven trustee volunteers in the area and we offer first aid courses and make sure all the defibrillators we already have are in working order.

“We are also here to raise awareness and we are really hoping we can get all the schools in Hawick covered.

“We are very grateful to all the local businesses who have helped us over the past few years. Without their support we wouldn’t be able to carry on.”

The charity will again be hosting a fun run in September in Hawick.

To find out more about Avril’s Trust or to make a donation, email: info@avrilstrust.org.uk