Thousands raised in memory of Corby man who died in crash will fund air ambulance missions

Seven life-saving air ambulance missions will be possible thanks to thousands of pounds which were donated in memory of a Corby man who died in a crash.

Much-loved Christian Severn, 30, was killed just after midnight on March 13 in the crash in Geddington.

But the senior engineer's family wanted something positive to come from the tragedy of losing their beloved son and, while they appreciated the thought behind floral tributes delivered to their Great Oakley home, they felt the money could be better used to honour his life.

Mum Collette said: “It seemed such a waste, so we decided to raise money in Christian’s memory for the local air ambulance charity that saved his life back in July 2005 when he was run over by a car.

"The actions of the Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance crew on that day gave Christian nearly 16 more years of life that he lived to the full, years during which he followed his dreams.

"He found love and was engaged to be married, travelled the world, got a degree and had a successful career that he loved, saw his younger brothers grow into men and was here when his sister was born.

“Christian would have died if the air ambulance didn’t attend the accident. He was so thankful and knew why he was still on the planet and who was responsible for it.”

It took Christian two years to recover from the accident on the A6003 in Corby when he was 15-years-old.

He suffered a brain injury, a compound fracture to his leg and a broken foot. After being anaesthetised at the scene and having his foot reset, he was flown to hospital in Coventry and later transferred by land ambulance to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Since then, Collette, her husband Poul and other members of the family have supported the local air ambulance charity.

An online tribute page set up in Christian’s memory has raised just over £12,000 and the family are also planning to organise a memorial event in the future at which they hope to collect even more money for the local air ambulance charity.

Collette said: “It’s been a great comfort to know that so many people thought so much of Christian. Money has been donated from friends and family all around the world and his employer Winvic Construction donated £5,000 which shows how much they valued him.

“Christian would be so pleased about how much money has been raised for the local air ambulance. He was a very driven, ambitious and energetic young man who followed his dreams, and without the charity he would not have been able to do that from the age of 15.”

Irene Wayness from the charity’s legacies and in memory team said: “It has been my privilege to be let into the Severn families lives, and I can only thank them for their positive approach at such a difficult time.”

The Air Ambulance Service no Government funding and two local air ambulances, Warwickshire & Northamptonshire Air Ambulance and Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland Air Ambulance carry out 1,800 rescues a year. Each rescue mission costs about £1,700.