Memories of Harbury man have inspired wife to raise money for defibrillators and CPR classes

On June 16th 2019, father-of-two Richard Lynch, 43, suffered a cardiac arrest at home and died with his family by his side at University Hospital Coventry the next day.

Had his wife Ann and a neighbour not been able to use an automated external defibrillator (AED) and perform CPR Richard would have had less chance of even reaching the hospital.

Ann is now leading a fundraising campaign which has so far covered a replacement AED in the village and will continue to run in the hope of having more defibrillators installed.

And she has also organised for free cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) classes to take place in the village.

Ann said: “Our rural location means that help takes longer to arrive – we need to be ready to take care of each other until the professionals arrive.

“The CPR given and the use of the AED gave Richard time and a chance.

“Around 75 per cent to 80 per cent of all out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen at home, so being trained to perform CPR can mean the difference between life and death for a loved one.

“Effective bystander-CPR, provided immediately after cardiac arrest, can double a victim’s chance of survival.

“CPR helps maintain vital blood flow to the heart and brain and increases the amount of time that an electric shock from a defibrillator can be effective.

“You can make a difference.”

Richard was a normal healthy man with no history of heart problems.

He, Ann and their two children Luke, 13, and Libby 11, moved to Harbury in 2017, where they loved living as a family.

Richard loved motorbikes and if he wasn’t cleaning his, he was out washing it instead

Ann said: “Richard had a cheeky sense of humour and really was loved by all that met him.”

Harbury Rugby Club has been hosting the free CPR classes.

Ann has said that she hopes to organise more in the future .

To make a donation to the fundraising campaign visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/harburycpr

Any excess money raised will go to the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance Service.

Ann is also asking people to sign a petition to have the Government pass a law which makes it compulsory for all new housing estates to have an AED.

For more information visit https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/270249/moderation-info