Generous Evening Press readers have helped buy 12 life-saving heart monitors in memory of Jamie Bucknell, the York schoolboy struck down by a heart condition.

And the swiftness of your response to Jamie's Have A Heart Appeal means we reached our £7,500 target in only three weeks - just in time for Christmas.

The Evening Press and Jamie's family set up the appeal to buy 12 heart monitors for York District Hospital after the Huntington School pupil collapsed and died in school last month.

Responding, many readers gave moving accounts of how Jamie's story had affected them, or disclosed how heart disease had touched their own lives.

Jamie's family today described our readers as "the wonderful people of York".

Keith Bucknell, Jamie's dad, said: "We just can't believe how kind people have been.

"It really has helped us to have all this support over the last few weeks. It's kept us going until Christmas knowing how much people care about Jamie and what happened." The new monitors can be taken home by a patient suffering with a heart irregularity and can be used to record vital information.

They are now kept on the cardio-respiratory ward at York District Hospital and will start helping to cut the waiting list from January.

The department currently has people waiting until March before they can have a portable monitor.

Jane Allen, head of the ward, said: "These monitors will have a direct effect on the people of York. We can cut waiting times dramatically now. Thank you so much to everyone.

"And thank you to Jamie's family for their support. This really is a wonderful lasting memory of Jamie for York."

The family say the national charity CRY, Cardiac Risk in the Young, has given them a great deal of support since Jamie's death.

The family has vowed to keep fundraising in Jamie's memory to help increase research and save other children's lives. Anyone who would like more information about the continued fundraising can log on to www.c-r-y.org.uk or contact 01372 276187.

Jamie's mum, Debbie, said: "Thank you so much to the people of York."

Updated: 10:12 Monday, December 24, 2001