EFC star’s global bid to boost charity
EVERTON legend Derek Mountfield flew a 1985 football programme round the world to try to get his old teammates’ signatures for charity.
Derek Mountfield was part of the 1985 FA Cup Final squad which saw Everton face Manchester United at Wembley.
Now the former centre-back is flying a copy of the match programme around the globe to try to get as many signatures as possible.
The programme will then be sold at a charity auction for Vital Signs Foundation – a heart screening charity founded in memory of Christopher Haw, who died suddenly in Southport at just 25 years of age.
Derek has sent the programme from Dubai to Doha and across the UK .
He said: “It has been an interesting journey, that’s for sure.
“It started off as just one or two then all of a sudden I’m looking at Dubai, Australia and Doha.
“It has put a lot of people back in touch with each other. I’m so pleased we have managed to get so many signatures 32 years down the line.”
So far Derek has managed to get 16 out of 18 players in the programme to sign it and said he is “over the moon” with the results.
He has spent nearly six months gathering signatures and arranging for the programme to be passed round all the former players.
Derek even travelled to Dubai to get one of his former team-mates to sign it ahead of the charity auction.
The Haw family, alongside friend Mark Cunningham, founded the Vital Signs Foundation (VSF) with the aim of delivering community-based free heart screenings across Merseyside and the North West for young people aged 15-35 and detecting undiagnosed heart conditions.
Christopher’s dad Steve Haw, a Liv- erpool fan, met up with Derek to see the progress he’d made on the 1985 programme.
Derek said: “I’m just pleased it’s going to charity, after speaking to Steve about what he has been through.
“If it helps other people then at least I’ve done a little bit.”
Since being established, VSF has provided over 1,500 free heart screen- ings and found many young people who had undiagnosed and serious unknown heart conditions.
The programme will be auctioned off at VSF Charity Golf Day on Friday June 16 at the Hillside Golf Club.
However, any prospective bidders will have to beat Derek to take it home.
He said: “I might start the bidding myself – it feels like part of me now.”