Devoted dad running Great North 10k and Great North Run in memory of daughter Evie Darling

A heartbroken Sunderland dad is hitting the road to help other families coping with the loss of a child.

Daniel Darling's daughter Evie passed away suddenly due to an undiagnosed heart condition in October, aged just seven weeks.

Daniel and wife Demi-Leigh were supported by Sunderland-based 4Louis, which supports bereaved families following miscarriages, stillbirths and deaths of babies and children.

The charity offered them a memory box, a special keepsake which allowed the family to have hand and foot prints of Evie, along with a teddy bear for them and one for Evie.

"Receiving this memory box during our time of blind panic and heartache made a significant difference," said Daniel.

"We hadn't thought to create these lasting reminders of Evie. It was this gesture that inspired me to run the Great North Run to raise money for 4Louis ."

Daniel will be among thousands of runners taking part in the iconic race later this year - and he has signed up for next month's Great North 10K in preparation for the big day.

"Running has been my therapy, helping me channel my grief into something productive," he said.

"I just want to do this for Evie."

4Louie is not the only city charity to have been supported by the couple as a tribute to Evie.

Along with Demi-Leigh's parents Keith and Kirsty Steele, the couple have raised £4,500 to pay for two new defibrillators to be installed by Sunderland’s Red Sky Foundation at Fulwell Infants and and Junior Schools, which Evie would have attended and to which bigger brother Sam, three, will go.

New course

The Foundation has placed a third of the life-saving machines at The Cliff, the pub which Keith and Kirsty run, in Mere Knolls Road, Fulwell.

The new course for the Great North 10K will see runners cross the Tyne Bridge, loop back into the city centre, pass by well-known landmarks such as Grey’s Monument and the Civic Centre, and finally cross the finish line on the Town Moor.

There is still time to join Daniel and hundreds of others at the AJ Bell Great North 10K on Sunday, July 2.

For more information or to register, visit www.greatrun.org/north10K.