A FORMER Middlesbrough footballer and his wife are preparing to end 12 years of charity fundraising in memory of their two-year-old son who died in a tragic choking accident.

Colin Cooper and partner Julie set up the Finlay Cooper Fund to honour the memory of their little boy who died in 2002.
In the dozen years since the fund launched in August 2006, more than £600,000 has been raised for children’s causes across Teesside.

But the Cooper family are now keen to invest in a legacy project to preserve the memory of their son who would have celebrated his 19th birthday last week.

The Northern Echo: Hartlepool United manager Colin Cooper, his assistant Craig Hignett and Sky Sports TV presenter Jeff Stelling celebrate reaching the top of Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for the Finlay Cooper Fund.

Colin Cooper with Craig Hignett and Jeff Stelling celebrate reaching the top of Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for the Finlay Cooper Fund

Finlay died in January 2002, shortly after Mr Cooper had returned home after playing in Middlesbrough’s FA Cup win over Manchester United.

The Cooper’s set up the children’s charity in his name four years later, kicking off the fund by donating cash raised at Mr Cooper’s Middlesbrough testimonial match against Italian side Chievo.

With the support of trustees Nick Waites, Graham Fordy and Lee Bramley, the fund has gone on to support a wide range of children’s causes including hospices and vital equipment for local children.

Mr Cooper said: “We are a small charity of just five people, each of us doing what we can in our spare time, so we couldn’t be prouder to have raised £600,000 in our son’s name.

“We’ve done it with the help of so many people out there but most of all our three loyal trustees – Nick, Lee and Graham – without whom we wouldn’t have been able to achieve a fraction of what we have.

“But we feel that this a natural conclusion, that it’s the right thing to do.”

More than £100,000 was raised when Mr Cooper, Mr Fordy and Mr Waites led a group of fundraisers including Sky Sports presenter Jeff Stelling and former Boro player Craig Hignett to the peak of Mount Kilimanjaro.

The Northern Echo:

Colin and Julie Cooper with Finlay Cooper Fund trustees Nick Waites, Graham Fordy and Lee Bramley

Now, however, the couple have agreed with the charity’s trustees to bring the fundraising to an end.

But to ensure the Finlay Cooper Fund goes out on a high, they are looking for a permanent children’s project to support with a six-figure sum that will stand as a lasting legacy to their much-missed son.

Mr Cooper added: “We’ve always tried to fund smaller, specific children’s projects and then last year we donated about £32,000 towards a caravan to allow disadvantaged local families to enjoy short breaks in Filey.

“But we want the charity to go out with a big bang so we’d like to fund something bigger to create a legacy that carries Finlay’s name on it and the charity’s dragonfly emblem that our family has adopted in Fin’s memory. That would be a fitting tribute to Finlay and all that’s been achieved in his name over the past 12 years.”

Mrs Cooper said: “We are sad about it but we are really, really proud of what we’ve achieved, of this area and the way local people have supported us.”

Charities and organisations interested in applying for a six-figure sum to support a long-term legacy project can email info@finlaycooperfund.co.uk by the end of January 2019.