A COMMUNITY group is rallying behind a dad who found solace in exercise following the death of his young daughter.
Chris Campbell, from Colchester, tragically lost his 17-year-old daughter Maddy last September after she suffered heart failure in her sleep.
The much-loved and popular Honywood School student’s sudden death is understood to have been caused by an undetected hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
As a way of channelling his grief into something positive, Chris signed-up to take part in CrossFit DireWolf classes at the Colchester Fitness Centre.
Mark Maher, 34, who is the co-founder of the gym, said: “His mates were trying to get him out of the hole he was in and he needed something that was not sitting at home.
“It is not your normal gym because we do CrossFit classes which are all coach so it gives off more of a community vibe and everyone gets to know each other.
“Chris carried his grief incredibly well and none of us actually knew until after about six weeks – he had a positive attitude and just wanted to get fitter.
“When I found out what had happened I was shocked but the community of the gym has helped him better than he could have imagined and he super grateful.
“He is stronger and feels better in himself and it has really helped him get through it.”
Mark and his team have now decided to organise a fundraising fitness event in support of Chris and in aid of his charity of choice, C-R-Y, to raise £1,000.
The non-profit organisation is dedicated to detecting and curing the condition Maddy unknowingly battled by conducting heart screenings on children and young people.
Mark added: “We organise these events regularly and they are an in-house fitness competition and we all dress up and make a day of it – but this one is for Chris.
“It is basically a team competition and they will have five workouts throughout the day that are prescribed by us.
“You either have to do the workout as quick as possible or you will have to do as many reps as possible in a certain amount of time.
“It is a bit of fun but Chris is a valued member of the DireWolf community, and we want to support him and his family as much as possible.”
To donate visit gofundme.com/f/for-maddy-campbell.
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