Mum’s horror as ‘beautiful angel’ boy, 14, dies after being found in bed with blue lips and fingertips
A HEARTBROKEN mum has paid tribute to her "beautiful angel" after he passed away aged just 14.
Ben Horton, from Edgeley, Stockport, was found "unconscious" in his bed with his "lips and fingertips blue" on January 9.
He was rushed to hospital where he was put on life support for two days but sadly never recovered.
The decision was made to switch his life support off on Saturday night.
His mum Zoe Thompson has now issued a heartfelt tribute to her "angel".
She said "couldn't have asked for a better son" and asked the community to pull together to give him "the best send off he deserves".
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"I really did not think I would be writing something like this," she shared on a GoFundMe set up to support the family.
"On the 9th Jan at 7.10am we went to wake Ben up for school and found him unconscious, his lips and finger tips was blue.
"We rang 999 then I had to start CPR which you do not ever expect to be doing on your 14-year-old son.
"Ambulance and police arrived quickly to help Ben and we were transported to Manchester Royal Children's Hospital. Ben was very critical and put on life support.
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"He was very unstable, the doctors and nurses did many scans, bloods and many more tests to find that the oxygen had been cut from Ben's brains for a while which caused his brain to swell and damaged some brains cells.
"Doctors said Ben had a 50/50 chance of pulling though. Ben wasn’t reacting to lights and his eyes was fixed and the life support was doing all the work for him.
"After battling for two long days and nights Ben still wasn't reacting, he sadly didn't pull through.
"Ben tried your hardest but today Saturday 11/01/2025 his life support will be turned off at 12pm."
Zoe added she was "totally heartbroken" and she would "always remember" her son's last words.
"Please remember I love you beautiful boy," she wrote.
How to give CPR to an infant
If a baby or child is unresponsive and not breathing normally, call 999 and start CPR straight away...
- Check if they are breathing. Look listen and feel for breaths.
- If they are not breathing, tell someone to call 999.
- Give five rescue breaths.
- Give chest compressions.
- Give two rescue breaths, continue with cycles of 30 chest compressions and two rescue breaths until help arrives.
How to give rescue breaths for a baby under one year
- Ensure the head is in a neutral position and lift the chin.
- Take a breath, then cover your baby's mouth and nose with your mouth, making sure it's sealed. If you cannot cover both the mouth and nose at the same time, just seal either with your mouth. If you choose the nose, close the lips to stop air escaping.
- Blow a breath steadily into the baby's mouth and nose over one second. It should be sufficient to make the chest visibly rise.
- Keeping their head tilted and chin lifted, take your mouth away and watch for the chest to fall as air comes out.
How to do chest compressions in babies less than one year
- Do the compressions on the breastbone with the tips of two fingers, not the whole hand or with both hands.
- The quality (depth) of chest compressions is very important. If the depth of 4cm cannot be achieved with the tips of two fingers, use the heel of one hand.
Source: British Red Cross and NHS
"Ben you are my angel and I couldn't have asked for a better son you was my world.
"Let's pull together as a community and give Ben the best send off he deserves. Fly high beautiful boy."
Tributes have poured in for the young boy on a Facebook post shared by the Sir Robert Peel hotel, who are collecting donations to support the family.
"I remember coming to a Stockport Academy awards evening and Ben lifted my spirits with his smile singing on the stage," Bryan Potts-Hargreaves wrote.
Ben you are my angel and I couldn't have asked for a better son you was my world.
Mum Zoe Thompson
"He was a beautiful soul for all to see. Much love and thoughts to this lovely boys family."
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Sophie Stevens added: "Ben was such a lovely, polite, caring boy, he always had a smile on his face, my heart goes out to his family at this devastating time, thinking of you all and sending so much love.";
You can donate to the GoFundMe .
