A County Durham charity that works to provide life-saving defibrillators after the tragic loss of a local footballer is set to hold its latest fundraising event this weekend.

Missed a Beat, a charity set up and based in Newton Aycliffe, will host a fundraiser including a tombola and raffle tomorrow (Saturday, August 12) to raise money to buy life-saving defibrillators.

The foundation was set up by Mark Preston, after his close friend Darren Scott passed away after a medical emergency whilst playing football for Cobblers Hall FC in February 2022.

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The Northern Echo: Cobblers Hall FC over 40s playing at South Shields Catholic Club, in an annual memorial match on Saturday August 5.Cobblers Hall FC over 40s playing at South Shields Catholic Club, in an annual memorial match on Saturday August 5. (Image: MARK PRESTON)

Since then, Mark has been working tirelessly to provide communities and teams with defibrillators and training to operate the devices, which are devices used to save a person’s life when they are in cardiac arrest.

The charity is now set to hold its latest fundraiser this Saturday at Tesco Extra on Greenwell Road, aiming to raise funds to provide more defibrillators to sports teams and communities with ambitions to expand their reach across the rest of the region.

So far, Missed a Beat has donated ten fixed defibrillators across Newton Aycliffe as well as sixteen dual-use defibrillators to football teams that can be transported and shared between teams.

Ahead of the event, Mark spoke to The Northern Echo about the organisation and his hopes and dreams for the future of Missed a Beat.

“I do this because this is the right thing to do – and taking on this role has been great with the support of Tesco and my five trustees.

“But, it’s also about the community, it isn’t about one person because it is about the whole town.

“I am really hoping the charity will grow and gain more success in the future.”

Following the heartbreaking news of Darren Scott last year, Mark was one of many close friends who leapt into action, as the community banded together to raise in excess of £20,000 for the family.

Now, his work and reach has grown across Newton Aycliffe as he operates the charity alongside his full-time job in a children’s home.

Gemma Manders, Manager of Tesco Extra in Newton Aycliffe, described the effort the whole community has gone to after the store got involved with the charity just under a month ago.

“We lost a much-loved colleague in May to heart failure, her name was Julie Briggs, and we wanted to get involved in a charity in her memory.

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“We came across the Missed a Beat charity and decided to work with them as were ideally looking for something local.

“The community has absolutely pulled together once the fundraiser was announced, and we have had nearly two-hundered prizes donated that are up for grabs.

“It has been unbelievable.”

To find out more about MissedABeat or where the nearest defibrillator is to you, click here.