A 29-year-old man killed himself weeks after his father died, his family has said. Nicky Larkin, from Bridgend, was found dead near a stables in the Vale of Glamorgan where his daughter was learning to ride horses.
Father-of-two Nicky, who died last Sunday, October 23, was struggling to cope with the impact of father Roy’s passing, who was found dead at his bungalow in Bridgend aged 64 in August, Nicky’s mum Julie Larkin said. She said her son was “the most loving, hard-working man who adored his children”.
“It’s been heartbreaking for our whole family, we’re in bits,” Julie, 57, told WalesOnline. “Roy was a good father to Nicky and a good partner to me for 37 years. I was still with him when he died.”
The family does not know the circumstances surrounding Roy’s sudden death, but say he was struggling with throat cancer. “Roy’s death was very sudden,” Julie explained.
“He was found at his home in his bungalow by Nicky's sister in August. We buried him on September 20, which took a lot. I’m still in debt from that.”
Julie, who has three other children, said while Nicky had depression he had been “coping with” his struggles well before his father died. “He hasn’t been right since Roy died. He did have mental health issues and they worsened after that. I wasn’t worried about him before Roy died.”
Nicky often walked passed the farm with his daughter Katie, son Tommy, and partner Sian on a weekend. There was no indication he would take his life before he was found near the farm last weekend, Julie said. “He went there most weeks, he’d walk up usually, he was happy there,” she said.
“He was a lovely, lovely boy. A happy go lucky man, a selfless man, and an amazingly hard worker. He loved his children and his family. He was extremely popular.”
Nicky, who idolised his father, followed in dad Roy’s footsteps as a plasterer. Both men could “turn their hands to anything,” Julie said. “Roy was a good man,” she recalled. “He was going through a lot with the cancer before he died.
“As a family we lived a very normal life before Roy’s death. Everything was great. We had our problems but we worked through them. But everything has changed.”
Julie said she doesn’t know how she is going to be able to afford her son’s funeral without help. The community has rallied around her with fundraising endeavours in the hope they can raise enough money. You can see the main fundraiser here. The Eden nightclub in Bridgend is also hosting an event on November 11 where all earnings on the door will go towards Nicky’s funeral.
Family friends Alisha Harris and Stevie Hoey have organised much of the fundraising. Alisha said: "Sammy [Nicky's sister] and I have grown up together, I couldn't watch them struggling to pay for another funeral after losing Roy too. I was contacted by the owner of Eden - the biggest club in Bridgend - to do a night where he charges £2 entry at the door to raise as much as we can for the funeral for Nicky.
"They've kindly agreed to host the night on Friday, November 11, and the Wildmill Shop will have a collection there for any additional donations. We have also started collecting donations from local businesses and have had so many generous donations for the raffle. The whole community just wants Nicky to have the send off he deserves."
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