AN EAST End family will come together to mark the one year anniversary of their brother who tragically took his own life - by holding a charity football match.
Ben and Stuart Scobie have arranged an 11 vs 11 charity football match in memory of their brother Mark who died at the age of 26.
Father-of-one Mark, who is dad to two-year-old Heather, was found dead in his Rutherglen flat last May - and the tragedy is something his heartbroken brother Ben, 25, did not see coming.
He said: "My brother was a loving and caring man, with huge aspirations to do many things with his life. He was loved by many and was always the joker, however, no one was aware of his mental health state and tragically we find ourselves without him.
"It is only a year down the line and it is still fresh. It has been extremely difficult for me and my family, and it is just something that no matter how much time passes, it will always effect us."
Ben and Stuart, 31, from Mount Vernon, will focus on celebrating their brother's life at the football match which takes place at the Stepford Sports Park at 8pm on May 8. Their brother was a Rangers and Manchester City fan, and it felt fitting to host a football match in his honour.
They want to raise money for the Scottish Association for Mental Health and they also hope to increase awareness of the work the charity does.
More than £1,500 worth of donations have been collected so far, and the brothers are overwhelmed after initially setting a fundraising target of £400.
Glasgow-based police officer Ben said: "We have had an absolutely crazy response I never thought I would get £400 in a month never mind raising that.
"I can't thank people enough for everything they have done. It is just outstanding."
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He added: "Mental health has to be tackled in a much better fashion than it ever has been. I think there is such a stigma around how people deal with it especially with men.
"People need to be able to talk about things instead of this attitude of, 'just get on with things'.
"It is not right and things need to change."
You can donate here https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ben-scobie
For more information on SAMH, visit https://www.samh.org.uk/
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