Two things stand out from the many lovely tributes people have made about Dave since his sudden and very unexpected death. Firstly, people tell us what a loving, generous, happy and personable man he was; touching the lives of so many that he met. Secondly, almost everyone who knew Dave, thought of him as one of the fittest, most active men imaginable.

Sadly, despite his apparent fitness, on 16th August, whilst on one of his frequent bike rides enjoying the Oxfordshire countryside, he suffered a cardiac arrest causing him to die suddenly and very unexpectedly. Although his cycling friends did their best to revive him, by the time an ambulance arrived it was too late to save his life.

The Arrhythmia Alliance's Defibs Save Lives campaign is all about saving lives… by placing public-access Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) and training people in CPR.

CPR alone saves just 9% of people who suffer from a sudden cardiac arrest.

CPR and an AED increases the chance of survival five-fold to 50%.

Thank you for considering contributing to this worthwhile campaign. You may know that Dave's son, Gareth, works as a cardiac arrhythmia specialist and has worked with the Arrhythmia Alliance in a professional capacity in the past.  You may also remember Dave's numerous fundraising extravaganzas over the years. We hope he would have approved of this as a fitting final cause to support.

Below is some additional information about Cardiac Arrest and how Defibrillators can save lives

A person's heart will stop beating without warning when they suffer SCA. They will collapse, lose consciousness and look extremely pale.

Sudden cardiac arrest strikes without warning, regardless of age, killing 100,000 Brits every year.

It requires immediate treatment to keep blood pumping and to restart the heart to prevent brain damage and death. 

SCA happens because of a problem in the heart’s electrical system. The problem is caused by an abnormal heart rhythm; or cardiac arrhythmia. The most common arrhythmia that leads to SCA is called ventricular fibrillation (VF).

During a case of VF, the heart’s rhythm is so fast that its unable to pump blood to the body and brain effectively. Therefore, defibrillation is urgently needed to prevent death.