Wrap for Jak teams up with South Shields FC to host a football match in honour of his 18th birthday

The Wrap for Jak, which helps disadvantaged children at Christmas time, has announced that it will be hosting a charity football match at the 1st Cloud Arena on Saturday, May 10.

Tony Fada founded the charity after his ten-year-old son, Jak, died from a ruptured heart artery on November 6, 2017, the day after his grandfather, Jimmy Tomlin, had passed away.

While the official verdict recorded by the Coroner was a ruptured artery, Tony believes Jak “died of a broken heart”, after struggling to come to terms with Jimmy’s passing.

Every year around Christmas, the local community comes together to wrap presents for disadvantaged families - with around 1,500 families across South Tyneside having received support from the Wrap for Jak since it was founded.

Jak would have turned 18-years-old this year, so John Fada, Jak’s uncle, decided that he wanted to help the charity do something extra special to mark the occasion.

John said: “Jak would have had his 18th birthday this year so we thought that we would do something amazing for him and he loved football - he lived and breathed it.

“He loved South Shields FC, he even described the day at Wembley when they won the FA Vase as the best day of his life, so we thought what better place to try and hold the game than the 1st Cloud Arena.

“There was no other place that we wanted to do it, it is also sentimental to the family as we held his funeral here back in 2017.

“I can’t thank Carl and the football club enough, they’ve helped us every step of the way - as soon as I sent the first email, Carl was straight back to me giving us the pitch.

“I’d just like to say a big thank you to South Shields Football Club for letting us host the match, it is going to be amazing.”

Carl Mowatt, the Commercial Director at South Shields FC, has expressed his pride at being able to host the charity match at the 1st Cloud Arena.

He commented: “The family have been big fans of the club for years, and god bless Jak, he was a lovely kid.

“It isn’t just about the football club, it is about the community and what South Tyneside actually means to families like Jak’s.

“When the pitch is closed at the end of the season, we’ll be hosting nine charity games, predominantly for local people who are reaching out and trying to raise funds for various things.

“As Jak would have been 18 this year, it is an honour for us as a club to hold this game here.”

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Brian Houshby, of Wolf Competitions, the event’s main sponsor, has expressed his delight at being able to financially contribute to help out a local cause.

He added: “It is a fantastic event, we’ve known the Fadas since we were kids and with Wolf Competitions going from strength to strength, it is great for us to be able to put money in and help.

“When you help a great cause in your hometown, you get a buzz and goose bumps - it’s absolutely fantastic.

“We want people to donate for this great cause so get yourselves down, the marque will be open and we will be running the ‘grab a grand’ - there will be loads going on.

“It is all for a great purpose and that is why our CEO, James, is getting involved with a number of local charities.”

Tickets for the charity match cost just £5 per person, with under 10s getting entry for free and all proceeds go to the Wrap for Jak.

The gates at the 1st Cloud Arena open at 12pm on Saturday, May 10 - with kick off an hour later at 1pm.

You can buy tickets at: https://bookings.southshieldsfc.co.uk/packages/LZEmOKzmpW/e/dXen47gaWQ.