Donations in memory of Corby man will fund seven lifesaving air ambulance missions

Donations in memory of a Corby Senior Engineer who died at the age of 30 have raised enough money to fund seven lifesaving missions by the local air ambulance charity.

When Christian Severn was killed in a road traffic accident in March this year his family wanted something positive to come from the tragedy of losing their beloved son.

Floral tributes were being delivered to their home in Great Oakley, Corby, and whilst they appreciated the thought behind them, the family felt the money spent on flowers could be better used to honour Christian’s life.

His mum Collette explains:

“It seemed such a waste, so we decided to raise money in Christian’s memory for the local air ambulance charity that saved his life back in July 2005 when he was run over by a car.

The actions of the Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance crew on that day gave Christian nearly 16 more years of life that he lived to the full. Years during which he followed his dreams. He found love and was engaged to be married; travelled the world; got a degree and had a successful career that he loved; saw his younger brothers grow into men and was here when his sister was born.”

“Christian would have died if the air ambulance didn’t attend the accident. He was so thankful and knew why he was still on the planet and who was responsible for it.”

It took Christian two years to recover from the accident on the A6003 in Corby when he was 15 years old. He suffered a brain injury, a compound fracture to his leg, and a broken foot. After being anaesthetised at the scene and having his foot reset, he was flown to hospital in Coventry and later transferred by land ambulance to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Since then, Collette, her husband Poul, and other members of the family have supported the local air ambulance charity.

The online tribute page set up in Christian’s memory has raised just over £12,000 and the family are also planning to organise a memorial event in the future at which they hope to collect even more money for the local air ambulance charity.

“It’s been a great comfort to know that so many people thought so much of Christian. Money has been donated from friends and family all around the world and his employer Winvic Construction donated £5,000 which shows how much they valued him,” says Collette.

She adds:

“Christian would be so pleased about how much money has been raised for the local air ambulance. He was a very driven, ambitious, and energetic young man who followed his dreams, and without the charity, he would not have been able to do that from the age of 15.”

Irene Wayness from the charity’s Legacies and In Memory Team says: “It has been my privilege to be let into the Severn families’ lives, and I can only thank them for their positive approach at such a difficult time.”