A SCHOOLBOY and his much-loved uncle can now sit side by side once again after their grieving family raised more than £1,000 to fund a dedicated bench at Heybridge cemetery.
Before his sudden death a little over three months ago, Marc Wright was a daily visitor to the grave of eight-year-old Ryan Fleming, who was killed in 2011 by joyriding mechanics on the A414.
He would speak often of his wish for a memorial bench so that he could sit and speak with his nephew at the cemetery off Goldhanger Road.
But it is only after tragedy struck the family once more, with Marc's own death from a brain embolism at his home in Braintree in February, that his dream has finally been realised.
"He always said he wanted a bench as he was so tired of sitting on the grass but we just didn't manage it until now," said Melissa, Ryan's mother and Marc's sister, who also lost her former partner Mark Dale.
He hanged himself in his Maldon home after struggling to cope with Ryan's death.
"One day during the trial for Ryan [the drivers of the Porsche were jailed for six and a half years, and 12 months respectively] Marc became upset and just stormed off, we had no idea where he was.
"We searched for him everywhere and then found him just sitting at Ryan's grave drinking a bottle of beer to calm down.
"He told us one day he was going to end up next to him, but we just told him not to be so morbid."
At Marc's funeral in February, friends and family were asked to donate the cost of a drink to fundraise for the bench but by the end of the night parents Maurice and Angeline were astonished to find around £700 had been donated.
With further gifts from loved ones after the event, the family could finally apply for permission from the council to install the tribute on Tuesday.
"We've been amazed at how popular Marc clearly was, we've met so many of his friends we never knew and we know they're often visiting the site where he's buried," said Angeline, who recently recovered from lymphatic cancer.
"His friends will often stop at the cemetery when they've been for drinks and leave him a bottle of beer, or girls will leave flowers and other items we might not know the meaning behind.
"But we're just so grateful to everyone who gave money toward the bench – they've honestly made our dreams come true."
Piled high with teddy bears, stone angels, messages and even a single anonymous rose, the gravestones of Marc and Ryan continue to have daily visits from friends and family.
And now loved ones will be able to sit on the hard-won bench and remember the boys without sitting on wet grass – just as Marc wanted.
