Mum of boy who died in Gwynedd crash starts arts charity in his memory

Hugo Morris, 18, Jevon Hirst, 16, Harvey Owen, 17, and Wilf Fitchett, 17, all from the Shropshire area, drowned after Hugo lost control of the Ford Fiesta he was driving during an Eryri camping trip last November.

Crystal Owen, Harvey’s mother, has now set up “Shine On with Harvey Owen”, which will aim to raise money for other arts-based charities helping underprivileged young people.

A petition which Crystal has started, calling for “graduated driving licences” for new drivers aged 17 to 19, has also garnered more than 21,500 signatures: www.change.org/p/safer-driving-licensing-for-newly-qualified-17-19-year-olds.

She said: “Harvey was just a lovely boy, who would always see the best in anyone. He always had a soft spot for people who he thought were struggling, and would always stick by them.

“He appreciated everything he ever had.

“To know he’s continuing to help people, even now, I think will just give us a good focus. It will be great to see his love of music and creativity in other young people.”

As part of the charity, Crystal said she wants to create a “Shine On” award to recognise youngsters who benefit from its work.

It is also hoped that the charity will stage its own “mini-festival” at the Shrewsbury Food Festival in June 2025, featuring performances from some of the youngsters it has helped, but also raising awareness of road safety in “fun and interactive” ways.

Harvey, she said, was a keen guitar player, who loved The Beatles and was trying to form a band at college prior to his death, while he also harboured aspirations of running his own Italian café.

Harvey Owen (Image: NWP) Crystal added: “He always had loads of different crazes. About 14 to 16 months before he died, he got really into music, and got a few guitars.

“He was always at home; he wasn’t a boy I ever worried about. He’d always be in his ‘music shed’ practising - I’d be out shouting at him to come inside when he was still practising at midnight!

“It (charity) could have a lasting impact on young peoples’ lives. I taught in a college for three years, and worked in youth services for years before that, so I’ve seen first-hand how it can help.”

Donations pledged at Harvey’s funeral, plus £6,000 offered to the family from a JustGiving page last year, will help get the charity off the ground.

Crystal and Harvey Owen (Image: Crystal Owen) Crystal is also part of Forget-me-not Families Uniting, a group of more than 150 bereaved families as a result of graduated driving licences not being law.

The AA has also shown its support for her campaigning, estimating that at least 58 lives could be saved by introducing graduated driving licences in the UK.

Following the conclusion of the inquests into the teenagers’ deaths last month, Kate Robertson, senior coroner for North West Wales, sent a Prevention of Future Deaths report to the Department for Transport.

In this report, she raised concerns that deaths will continue to occur where younger people are carried in cars being driven by newly qualified and/or young drivers – Hugo had passed his test six months prior to the crash.