Ben Miles and Laura Marshall to hold charity golf day to raise money for Sands in son Ronnie's memory
16:24, 18 September 2017
A couple have spoken out about their heartbreak after their three week old son died suddenly.
Ben Miles and Laura Marshall had been enjoying becoming first time parents when their son, Ronnie, became ill in April.
After receiving support from Sands - stillbirth and neonatal death charity - they are looking to 'give something back'.
Laura said: "Ronnie was an extremely loved and content baby who unfortunately passed away at three weeks old.
"We wish to raise money for Sands to show how grateful we are for the work they do in offering support to bereaved families and funding vital research into preventing future baby deaths.
"Ronnie passed away very suddenly.
"He had been rather ill in his final week so we had been to see lots of health professionals.
"They all said he seemed fine and there was nothing to worry about. However, one day he lost all the colour from his face and died within an hour.
"We have been left with many questions as to why this has happened and Sands have been there for this whole journey - from grief counselling support to providing research.
"Sands reply solely on donations to fund their research so we decided holding a charity golf day in Ronnie's memory would give us something positive to focus on and also help many other families out there in a similar position to us."
A charity golf event will be held in Ronnie's memory - Ronnie Miles Golf Day - at Westgate & Birchington Golf Club on Friday, September 22.
In support of Ben and Laura and the charity, director of Think Big Tech Chris Vilton will be taking part, having never picked up a golf club before.
Ben has taken on the task of coaching Chris for the day, which has been made more challenging as Think Big Tech have entered a team of four into a tournament in Octobe at the Royal St George's Golf Club.
For Chris to follow in the footsteps of Rory McIlroy, playing 18 holes under Stableford Rules he must achieve a handicap of at least 24 on the charity day.
In the evening, there will be a raffle and the pair have been sourcing prizes from local businesses.
Donations can be made to Sands on justgiving.com/ronniemiles