A Co Tyrone mum has opened up on the heartbreaking loss of her husband and father to her two young children at just 38.
Chris Doherty, died last September after suffering a cardiac arrest in his home in Omagh , with wife Laura and sons Archie and Max in the house at the time.
Despite efforts to save Chris’ life, he passed away a week later surrounded by his family. The married couple had moved to Omagh in 2016, with Chris coming from Derry originally and Laura moving there from England.
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The IT professional’s wife Laura has opened up on the family’s loss as they prepare to publish a children’s book that Chris had written about fatherhood.
“Chris was generally in good health and with very little warning he took a cardiac arrest in the house last September,” Laura told MyTyrone.
“We were all at home, he had gone up to the bedroom and that’s when it happened. He had undiagnosed heart disease and had a massive heart attack.
“The ambulance crews all came out and the Air Ambulance as well. They took him up to Altnagelvin and he was in ICU for a week.
“But it got to the stage where I think on the Wednesday they said there wasn’t going to be any good prognosis so gathered the family together.
“He passed away on 25 September. It was a huge shock for everybody because it came completely out of the blue.
“For his whole family and for the boys it was just an absolute shock. He was on furlough during lockdown and was pretty much looking after Archie the whole way through.
“Max was just four months when he passed then. It’s something you never imagine that would happen. There still is a lot of shock and it’s coming up to a year since.
“You still think to yourself, that can’t have happened surely? He had just started a new job with a local company and he was just coming into the prime of his life.”
Having Archie and Max to look after has provided Laura with the ideal distraction from her and the family’s grief.
“It’s been very difficult. I’m so grateful for my two boys because you have to get back into the pattern of life.
“Getting up and looking after them and everything they need keeps you sane. I don’t know what I would do otherwise, it’s been a devastating loss for all of us.
“It would have been his birthday today, and the book is just such a lovely legacy to the boys.”
Laura added Chris had spent most of his time during lockdown focusing on the book project, and her and the family have now finished it and it will be available for purchase on Amazon in the coming weeks.
Half of the proceeds of the book will go towards the British Heart Foundation.
“For him since the boys arrived he had this idea about the book and got very stuck into it. He worked with his cousin Alex who did the illustrations.
“They spent half of lockdown conspiring to have this book created. The theme of it is being present as a father and that was something that was very important to him.
“It was 99% finished before Chris passed and we are just trying to get the word out there as we prepare to have it published.
“It is a touching story called ‘Donovan the Sloth Makes it Home for Bedtime Stories’ and tells the story of a busy father trying to overcome obstacles so he can enjoy stories with his son Archie.”
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