A WOMAN who lost three members of her family to heart disease is preparing to host a fund-raising music night in Helensburgh for a leading heart charity.

Julie Brown, 41, from Garelochhead, is aiming to raise £500 for the British Heart Foundation after her mum, brother and uncle all died from the condition.

Julie said: “I am organising a charity night, Diamonds In The Sky, to raise money for the British Heart Foundation and the wonderful job they do to help people with heart disease.

“I am trying to raise as much money possible as I sadly lost my mum, brother and uncle to heart disease all at a very young age.

“My dad has been in and out of hospital over the last 10 years with the same condition and most recently I lost one of my close friends, Linda who stays in the USA, who sadly passed away after having a heart attack.”

Julie, along with the help of her friends has hosted similar events previously.

On Ocotober 1, 2016 she hosted a similar event to raise money for the Beatson Cancer Centre. They raised a good amount of money which Julie explained was for “all of our friends and family lost to cancer - we call them our ‘diamonds in the sky’.”

This year’s Diamonds in the Sky event is set to take place on Saturday, September 23 at the Clyde Bar in West Clyde Street, from 6pm.

Two local performers, Paul McCabe and Danzo, are giving up their own time to play on the night. Both have played at previous events hosted by Julie and she is grateful for their support.

Joining them in the line-up for the night are Scott Brown, David Forbes, William Daniel, Mark McLaughlan, Ultimate Buzz and Korrupt.

Julie extended her thanks to John Rapallini at the Clyde Bar for allowing her to hold the night free of charge and for his ongoing support and donations to her fund-raising efforts. She also thanked Steven Philips who originally organised the nights with her, he decided to bow out of this one but is still lending a hand to sell tickets.

Lisa Stafford, BHF Scotland’s fund-raising manager for Helensburgh, said: “We never cease to be amazed by the extraordinary ways people like Julie fundraise for BHF Scotland. Every contribution, big or small, plays a crucial part in every breakthrough we make so we are incredibly grateful for their support.

“But we urgently need more people to join our fight for every heartbeat and help power our life saving research.

“That’s why we’re calling on everyone across Scotland to organise their own fund-raising event to help support our vital work.”

Early bird tickets for the event sold out earlier this month and anyone looking to attend is advised to get in touch for a ticket.

Tickets are priced at £20 and are available from the Clyde Bar on West Clyde Street.

All proceeds will go to the British Heart Foundation to aid in their mission to win the fight against cardiovascular disease and their vision of a world in which people do not die prematurely or suffer from cardiovascular disease.

Julie has also set up a JustGiving Page with the target of £500. To donate or read more of her story visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/julie-brown1994