A COMMUNITY is rallying together to support two brothers who have suffered a year of almost unbearable loss following the untimely deaths of their parents.
Seven-year-old Mason Flatman and his half-brother Conar Ward, 29, tragically lost their mum Cara Sycamore last March, leaving themselves and their dad Colin Flatman heartbroken.
After an indescribably difficult year coming to terms with her death, Colin suddenly died last month.
Cara died at home aged 50 following complications and could not be revived by Colin, despite his best efforts.
Last month, Colin, a 51-year-old mechanic, was found collapsed at work following a brain haemorrhage.
He was rushed to Ipswich Hospital and then transported to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, in Cambridgeshire, but died a short time later.
Conar, a head chef, is now taking care of his little brother Mason and has applied for a special guardianship order to become his full time guardian.
Conar and Mason share a mum but Colin was Conar’s stepdad. However, he said he saw him as a father figure for years.
Conar said he knew which organisations to contact for support and services following Colin’s sudden death.
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Over the past month Conar has been taking Mason to and from school and looking after him.
“Mason is on the autistic spectrum,” Conar said.
“He is dealing with everything differently, but he has been asking me questions about mum and dad at night time.
“He does ask me where daddy has gone, which is particularly hard.
“I am just trying to be there for him.”
Colin’s funeral is being held on June 1, so Conar is trying to take each day at a time.
“I have been on autopilot mode since my dad passed,” he said.
“When I found out he died I rushed from Chelmsford where I was at the time to get to Mason.
“I wanted to be there for him and keep him in a routine to check he is OK and going to school.
“I have not yet had time to reflect.”
Conar has thanked Mason’s school Hazelmere Infant School, in Colchester, for offering the best support it can for Mason.
As a way of helping the brothers through this painful time in their lives Steven Turnbull, the school’s headteacher, decided to launch a fundraising page for them.
The GoFundMe page was set up on Tuesday in a bid to raise enough money to buy Year Two pupil Mason and Conar Colchester Zoo gold cards so they can experience some fun days out together.
The initial fundraising target to cover the costs of the tickets was £120.
However, more than 24 times that amount was raised in the first 24 hours of the page launching.
So far almost £3,000 has been pledged by nearly 200 donors.
Conar said he needed to take a seat when he realised how many people had made a donation.
“Reading the comments was overwhelming and emotional,” he added.
“It made me realise we are not alone and there are so many people out there who care.”
Mr Turnbull said the school is “utterly overwhelmed” by the level of support the brothers have received.
He added: “We have been offered tickets and holiday cottages to help Mason and Conar to give them days to have a break and build some memories together.
“It’s astonishing how many people have donated, we were not expecting it at all.
“The donations have left me staggered and lost for words.
“We are just glad we can play a small part with helping them, and it’s lovely to know there are so many people out there who have donated.”
To find out more or donate, visit bit.ly/3wie1fX.
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