THE ashes of a Durham man who died in China 24 hours after losing his own mum will be repatriated with his family after a fundraising mission reached its target, as his family have paid tribute to a “cherished man”.
County Durham born Kevin Reay lost his life during a fall in the Asian country on March 11 – having spent six years as an English teacher at Lianhua Middle School, Shenzhen, China.
The tragic incident was intensified after, just over 24 hours later Kevin’s mum, Eileen, also died from a 'broken heart'.
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After his untimely death, being in China complicated laying Mr Reay to rest, with lockdown and regulations delaying things – resulting in mounting costs for his family that had to be paid upfront to the authorities before things could move forward.
These financial costs led to the creation of a Go Fund Me page set up on behalf of the Reay family, which aimed to raise at least £1000 to help with the expenses.
Now, a month on from Mr Reay’s death, the fundraising page has raised just under £2000, and it’s been announced that things are moving forward with bringing Kevin’s ashes back to the UK.
After holding a funeral for the English teacher in China on Friday (April 8), which none of his family could attend, due to the ongoing Covid restrictions, plans are afoot to fly the ashes over to England later this month and have a memorial event in the UK.
The fundraising page can be found here.
Paying tribute to his brother and mum, Martin Reay, who remembers his loved ones as “the greatest” has called the last four weeks “the toughest to deal with” but has highlighted how “touching” the generous donations via the fundraiser has been.
He said: “We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has donated.
“Saying thank you somehow doesn't feel enough but we are all genuinely touched by your generosity and kind words. Without doubt this is the most difficult thing we've ever had to deal with and continue to deal with but the kindness that has been showed has and is really helping us get through each day.
“We plan on having Kev's ashes brought to the UK where family and his many, many friends will hold our own memorial to him and share some of the many, many stories we all have, as well as possibly having a plaque placed somewhere in his memory.
“We thank everyone who has donated from the bottom of our hearts for everything. It will never, ever be forgotten, as neither will Kev, or of course, our dear mam.”
Alongside his career in education, Kevin worked in a local arts foundation. In County Durham, he also helped produce a documentary film on the small former mining community of Stanley – entitled ‘This is Stanley’, alongside his friend Simon Green.
Remembering Kevin, who he credits with “dramatically changing his life”, Mr Green posted online: “I spent a month in China where Kevin was teaching English, another life changing experience that he was responsible for.
“He shared his home, his family and friends and his life with me, both in the UK and in China. My best and most enduring memory of him, is the two of us sat with a beer putting the world to rights, the evening before I flew home from China.
“We spoke online regularly and would end every conversation with an agreement that as soon as the world had returned to normal, I would pay him another visit.
“I am devastated that I will not be able to do that.”
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