CHRISTMAS is not a happy time for everyone as David and Brenda Brookes know all two well.

Three years ago, their lives were shattered when daughter Alison died suddenly, on Christmas Eve, aged just 28.

Alison was an apparently healthy young woman and the following day her boyfriend had planned to give her an engagement ring.

She was a victim of sudden cardiac death, which can be caused by a range of heart conditions, that have often gone undiagnosed.

Since then David, aged 66, who is an artist, has been raising money for SAD - the Sudden Adult Death Trust.

The charity helps people who have lost a loved one suddenly and unexpectedly.

"Losing an apparently healthy young person for no apparent reason cannot be described," said David who lives in Mickleton.

"SAD not only helps the families of victims but also promotes research and screening.

"Many tragic cases can be avoided."

In some people sudden cardiac death can be hereditary, so it is sensible to ask for screening if there have been victims in the family.

In many cases, there are no symptoms but if there are these can include; shortness of breath or sudden fainting when exercising or stressed.

For David and Brenda, 71, Christmas is a time of year they now dread.

But David has turned his hobby of painting into a way of raising money for SAD. He made £500 for the charity at a recent exhibition at Mickleton Methodist Church.

David was exhibiting in conjunction with artist Jennifer Ginnell, 48, also from Mickleton.

Jennifer raises money for the charity LUPUS, which helps sufferers from a disease of the immune system in which the victim's own antibodies attack healthy tissue.