Memorial bench for Kirkcaldy student, 24, who died hours after giving birth

Shannon Napier was just 24 when she suffered a fatal cardiac arrest on April 25, 2020, shortly after delivering her daughter, Abbie.

A graduate of Dundee’s School of Health Sciences, Shannon had qualified as a nurse just 18 months earlier and had been working at Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline. Her untimely passing shocked family and friends, including those who studied alongside her at the University’s campus in Kirkcaldy.

On the third anniversary of her death, classmates who launched a crowdfunding initiative to celebrate Shannon’s life gathered at the University of Dundee’s School of Health Sciences - the former Fife College of Midwifery - on Forth Avenue to unveil a bench in her memory. They hope it will be a place where they can reflect and remember her.

Shannon’s mum, Tracy De Munck Mortier, was joined by family members at a short unveiling ceremony.

She said, “Shannon always had such a caring nature – she loved to help people. She had such a large circle of friends and those friendships were such an important part of her time studying at university. When Shannon died, the support from her friends was such a comfort to everyone. To know that she had impacted on so many lives in such a positive way really helped us. It is nice to know that there is a place at the university where people can come to take a moment and think about Shannon and the happy memories they shared together.”

Shannon grew up in Kirkcaldy and was a former pupil of Fair Isle Primary and Kirkcaldy High School. She remained in the Lang Toun, studying at Dundee’s School of Health Sciences campus, undertaking a course in adult nursing. She graduated in 2018 before beginning her career with NHS Fife and working as a theatre nurse, though had expressed hopes to train as either a paramedic or midwife.

In the immediate aftermath of her death, Shannon’s classmates launched a crowdfunding page which raised over £17,000 to celebrate the life of their friend, as well as helping to support the daughter she would never get to see grow up.

The date of Shannon’s death also marked the one-year countdown to her wedding day, having met her fiancée, Jordan Burt, on that same date in 2009. Both he and Abbie attended Tuesday’s ceremony.

Jordan said: “A memorial like this will mean so much to Abbie. As she grows up it will be nice for her to know how important her mum was to so many people. It also reinforces what a role model Shannon was as a student, nurse, friend, daughter and fiancée. It is a part of her legacy to Abbie. It means so much to us that everyone who knew Shannon has a place to go and remember her.”

Linda Martindale, Dean of the School of Health Sciences, said: “It was a privilege to welcome Shannon’s loved ones back to campus for this unveiling, which will act as a permanent tribute to her time studying here and the high regard in which she was held.”