THE family of an outdoor pursuits instructor who died in a canoeing accident are to take to the sky in his memory.

Grant Kinnie’s mother, Margaret Kendrew, 51, of Darlington, and girlfriend Liz Ali, 32, of Ullswater, in Cumbria, decided to take part in the skydive to “make him proud”.

Mr Kinnie, 25, drowned in the River Eamont, near Penrith, Cumbria, on September 11 last year while working for the Patterdale Hall outdoor education centre.

Mrs Kendrew said: “Liz asked me if I wanted to do it, and I just said ‘yes’. I’m quite excited about it.

“He would have been so proud of us.”

Mrs Kendrew, of Stonedale Crescent, has raised more than £400 so far for the Great North Air Ambulance, which assisted in trying to save the life of her son, whose inquest is to be held on Thursday in Kendal, Cumbria.

Miss Ali, general manager at the Best Western Glenridding Hotel, at Ullswater, has raised more than £1,300 for the Patterdale Mountain Rescue team, which also helped.

She said: “It’s something me and Grant talked about.

“When I first met his mum and dad, we were sitting round the table and Margaret was talking about the skydive she did in Las Vegas.

“Grant said ‘we should do that’, but I was too scared at the time.

“But in February, Margaret and I decided we would do one together.”

She added: “It’s a thank you for their efforts – I know that if Grant survived the accident he would have been doing the same thing as us.”

The pair, together with Mr Kinnie’s sister, Erin, will complete the 14,500ft dive at Sky Dive North West, based at Cark Airfield, in Grange-over- Sands, Cumbria.

Mr Kinnie was one of four instructors from the outdoor education centre who were canoeing with a group of 11 students from a school in Lancashire when his canoe capsized in the fast-flowing river.

Rescuers pulled him from the water unconscious, and he was airlifted to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, in Newcastle, but doctors were unable to save him.

To make a donation, visit Mrs Kendrew’s Just Giving page, at justgiving.com/ margaret-kendrewforgrant, or Liz’s page, justgiving.com/ grantkinniecharities