Thank you for visiting NGUP Active’s just giving page.

Here is my full story and why I want to raise funds for Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital:

My name is Grant Williams and I own a South Liverpool based fitness company called NGUP Active.

On Saturday 9th March 2024 I was out running with a group of friends who are all members of my fitness group.

We were training for the April 2024 Manchester marathon. We set out to do a 12 mile run followed by coffee and cake because let’s be honest that’s the best thing about running!!

Our route had taken us around South Liverpool through Sefton Park, Wavetree technology park and Liverpool city centre. Mile 11 saw us running down smithdown road when I suddenly collapsed with no warning.

Unbeknown to me my heart had stopped and I experienced 2 sudden cardiac arrests in quick succession.

My friends acted immediately, rang an ambulance and placed me in the recovery position. They quickly realised my breathing was not sufficient and they could not feel my pulse, with the help of 2 doctors who (some would say magically) happened to be passing by they began giving me CPR.

While this was happening 2 of the group ran to the nearby Tesco to get a defibrillator in order to help restart my heart. The defib almost instantly detected a shockable rhythm and 1 shock was administered to me, followed by further CPR until the ambulances arrived.

This series of events lasted 8 minutes in total and I have no recollection of anything. I remember falling and I remember being in an ambulance, nothing in between.

If it wasn’t for the quick acting and thinking of my good friends that day, as well as the expertise of 2 passing Drs I would not be here and for me that will never be easy to understand.

I was rushed to the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital where an angiogram revealed the 4 main arteries in my heart were blocked, meaning at the time of my arrest there was no blood entering or leaving my heart. I was told I needed a quadruple heart bypass, and remained in hospital until this was successfully performed on Monday 25th March.

I am now very fortunately and somewhat unbelievably on my road to recovery and that is with huge thanks to friends, family, strangers and hospital staff.

I will never be able to speak highly enough of the staff at the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital. From the second we arrived in the ambulance until Sunday 31st March, when I was discharged, the level of care they gave me was extraordinary.

I will forever be in awe at the incredible surgeons who performed my open heart surgery and I am so grateful to every single member of staff that helped me process an event that quite literally spun my entire life on its head.

My time at their hospital opened my eyes up to just how important this place is, and how many people in similar situations to myself they help every single hour of every single day.

I struggle to express my gratitude in words but would love to give back to the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital for giving me a second chance. So please join me in donating, fundraising and raising awareness of the importance of defib & basic life support training.

Me and the team at NGUP Active have multiple fundraising ideas and events in the pipeline and we are going to use this just giving page as a place for people to donate.

All proceeds will be to the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital across the course of our fundraising, please get involved where you can and keep an eye out for our upcoming events!

Never give up x