‘IT DOESN’T FEEL FAIR’
Boyfriend planning a Valentine’s Day proposal left reeling after death of 24-year-old girlfriend who ‘lived a perfect life’
A DEVASTATED boyfriend has revealed how his dreams of a Valentine’s Day proposal were destroyed when his partner was found dead in bed at the age of just 24.
Charlotte Orwin, of Brunswick Village, died of sudden adult death syndrome in June this year.
Devoted partner of two-and-a-half years, Drew McLean, told how the couple had booked to go the Rome less than a week before Charlotte’s death, where he was planning to propose.
Heartbroken Drew said: “Charlotte was my missing puzzle piece. She was amazing and she changed my life completely – she completed me. “
Charlotte’s death came as a huge shock to family and friends who knew her as a happy, healthy young woman and Drew, who works at Newcastle Airport, said that other than her love of chocolate, she lived a healthy lifestyle.
The 31-year-old added: “She lived the perfect life and looked after herself. She didn’t drink or smoke, yet she has been taken from us – it doesn’t feel fair.”
The Newcastle University graduate spent her final day celebrating Drew’s mum’s birthday in Newcastle.
But the next morning she failed to arrive at work and it was later discovered she had died between Drew getting up for work at 5.45am and her alarm going off at 6am.
Drew recalls how he became concerned about Charlotte when he hadn’t heard from her that morning.
He adds: “I rang one of Charlotte’s colleagues to find out if she was at work, but when I was told she wasn’t there I began to panic.
“When I pulled up outside the house, her car was still there and the curtains had not been opened. It was at that moment I just knew she had died.”
To help the memory of Charlotte live on, Drew has been campaigning to raise awareness of CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young), the charity that has supported him since her death.
Drew explains he felt inspired to highlight the importance of cardiac screening when he took part in a CRY Memorial Walk in Durham with Charlotte’s mum last month. The 31-year-old adds: “I remember someone at the walk had said a lot of these deaths you won’t have read about in the paper.
“That was like a lightbulb moment for me and I knew I had to do something about it.” According to CRY, one in 300 people aged between 14 and 35 will have a potentially serious heart condition and 12 young people die from undiagnosed heart conditions each week. It costs £5,000 to deliver cardiac screening to 100 people, but the results can be lifesaving.
For more information about Cardiac Risk in the Young, visit www.c-r-y.org. uk.
Her car was still there and the curtains had not been opened. It was at that moment I just knew she had died.
Drew McLean