Josh’s grieving mum cannot bear to return home without her boy

●● Nicola McCormack with Josh DAMON WILKINSON

AGRIEVING mum has told how she has found it impossible to return to her family home without it being ‘filled with the love and laughter’ of her late son.

Josh McCormack, five, from Whitworth, died in January – 15 months after being diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour.

His fight against cancer inspired thousands of people after mum Nicola shared her son’s heartbreaking ordeal through the Facebook page Josh McCormack Fundraiser

This week in an heartbreaking Facebook post to mark the six month anniversary of Josh’s death Nicola told how she and husband Kev had been renting another house in a different town because they found it too painful to return to their family home.

Nicola wrote: “Today marks six agonising months since we lost Joshua and it’s still as raw and painful as ever.

“Many people say that as parents we are so strong for what we have been through but this is so far from the truth.

“We used to be strong: A solid family unit with a strong network of friends, living in our much loved family home with a strong sense of unconditional love oozing throughout it - Joshua being the centre of it all. But now we are completely lifeless. Too weak and afraid to move back into our family home or to the town we brought Josh up in.

“For the past six months we have been renting a house in another town and it’s going to be a hard and painful step moving back home without our lovely Josh to fill it with love and laughter.

“All our previous happy memories have been tarnished by the harrowing events of watching our precious boy suffer through the brutalities of brain surgery, radiation, chemo then pneumonia.

“Our beautiful son then slowly lost his ability to walk, talk, see and hear and there was nothing we could do to save him.

“We were then forced to watch as his frail skeletal body fought so hard to stay with us. This is not a strength but a tragedy and it’s so brutally pain- ful to live with and changes you as a person forever.”

Nicola also thanked the friends, family and colleagues who have rallied round since Josh’s death, saying she was ‘humbled and honoured’ by their support.

She also thanked bosses at Rochdale AFC, who named Dale fan Josh in the matchday squad for a game last season, for making the youngster a part of their ‘football family’.