Charity events being held this weekend in memory of big-hearted Gerry

A number of events will he held this weekend to mark the first anniversary of a popular Greysteel man who worked tirelessly to raise funds for charity.

Gerry Brown died suddenly last year, with his passing a huge loss not only to his beloved family, but the entire community, giving his dedication to his charity work.

Chief among this was his work for the St Vincent De Paul group, for which Gerry organised many events and initiatives.

He was also well known for dressing up as Santa and entertaining children in schools and people of all ages in local community centres.

To mark the first anniversary of his passing, a number of events will take place this Saturday aimed at raising funds for the St Vincent De Paul.

A 5k memorial fun run will be held on Saturday morning in Greysteel, which will be followed by a memorial dance on Saturday night in the Rising Sun Bar.

Speaking to the Derry News ahead of the events, Gerry’s wife, Helen Brown, said that the family were determined to continue her late husband’s legacy of fund-raising, and also show their appreciation of the support they received from the community in the wake of his passing.

“Gerry was so well-known in the community, he had a very loud personality, he was hard of hearing you see, so you would have heard him before you saw him!” Helen joked.

“He did an awful lot of work for charity, not just here in Greysteel, but all over, even as far out as Claudy, and he was well known for playing Santa too, he was so good at that, and he really loved doing it.

“So we thought that it would be good to do something for the first anniversary, because through that, Gerry’s memory will live on and we can do something for St Vincent De Paul, which he was so fond of.”

Helen added: “Gerry’s passing was so sudden, we’re a really big family and we received so much support from the community which were very appreciative of, people were so, so good, and that really helped us.”

The 5k family fun run and dander will take place on Saturday morning, with registration taking place at 10am in St Anne’s Hall.

The entry fee is £5 for a single entry and £2 for under 18s. The first place male and female winners will receive a cash prize.

The fun run will depart from the bottom of the Star of the Sea chapel brae, with runners setting off at 11am, with walkers scheduled to leave at 11.10am.

On Saturday night, the Rising Sun Bar will host a memorial dance in memory of Gerry, where music will be provided by US2.

The event will begin at 9pm and donations can be made at the door.

All proceeds from the events will go towards St Vincent de Paul.