Poignant memorial for father and son

FR I ENDS a nd fa m i ly of a young Dundee footballer who died from a n u nd iag nosed hea rt condition are preparing for a poignant charity bash in his memory.

Pete McAvoy died aged just 22 after suffering a cardiac arrest in his apartment in the US five years ago.

In the aftermath of his death, his father Peter Snr spearheaded a campaign to detect similar undiagnosed heart conditions.

But last year Peter Snr took ill while on holiday in France and died aged 60.

The annual #4Pete charity ball will take place for the second time since Peter Snr’s death next month.

His wife Anne, 58, from Craigie, said: “Peter Snr died in August last year. He would have been 61 in October.

“It’s a really emotional time right now with the event coming up and this year it will be a double whammy with both of them gone. They are both in our hearts.

“We were in France on holiday when Peter took ill on our second day.

“It was acute pancreatitis which a lot of people recover from but he had bleeds, then infections, and he just could not recover.

“But we got back to Dundee which he was delighted about - that he got to see all his family.

“It was always Peter’s intention that the charity ball was not so much a fundraiser but more of an opportunity for everyone to come together, dress up and have a nice evening.

“The boys are insisting on fundraising to keep #4Pete going.”

She added: “The money that has been raised over the years pays for a cardiologist team with nurses to come up from London to run screenings. It costs nearly £10,000 for the two days of screenings.”

The campaign has now raised more than £60,000 in the past three years.

The screenings of people aged 14-35 are done by Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY).

Pete Jr’s pal Ryan Valentine, 27, said: “I grew up with Pete since the age of four and we went to school together. It’s so sad he’s gone.

“The whole squad of our friends all go back a long way.

“We all grew up together and played football together but then Pete decided when he was a bit older to go and play in America on a scholarship.

“I reckon that if he was alive today he would still be out in America.”

The ball is at Woodlands Hotel in Broughty Ferry on Friday August 16.

Pete McAvoy, and, above, with his dad Peter Snr.