A YEAR ago they pledged to raise money in memory of their son, now a Basingstoke family have revealed that they generated an incredible £43,000 in just 12 months, and announced the total on the anniversary of their little boy’s death.

In December 2014, Mike and Lou Wilson were heartbroken when their five-year-old son Jayden died at home on Christmas Eve after being diagnosed with a rare, incurable grade-four stem tumour in 2013.

But soon after losing their little boy, the Wilson family embarked on an inspiring fundraising mission to generate as much as possible for Naomi House Hospice, in Sutton Scotney, which has supported them.

The family held various fundraising activities throughout the year, including a climb up Mount Kilimanjaro, and inspired others to pull in the pounds in memory of Jayden through a campaign titled Hope From Jayden.

Announcing the total on Christmas Eve, a year to the day Jayden was taken home for Christmas, the family said: “He was so tired and drained from an 18-month battle, he passed away peacefully that night warm in his bed. He inspired us to be strong and help others in any way we could, raising money for Naomi House. We so want him back with us, to be his cheeky happy little self with his big sister and little brother. We would give everything to have one more day with our special warrior.

“Today is a day for our family not to be unhappy, but a day to remember the happy times and incredible memories we created to forever think about.”

The family said they were “blown away” with the amount raised, adding: “There are no words to describe how amazing that is. Jayden would be so proud and happy for everyone who helped.”

Speaking to The Gazette about the money raised, Mike said: “It’s all been inspired by Jayden. It was our way of giving back. But this isn’t going to be the end.”

He added: “It’s an amazing feeling that Jayden is the one who has raised £43,000. He inspired a lot of people and was at the forefront of making it happen.”

Jayden, who was a pupil at St Mark’s Primary School, in Hatch Warren, was taken to hospital after falling over in August 2013, suffering a bump to his head which left him unsteady on his feet.

His parents were then given the devastating news that he had an inoperable tumour.

Just 450 people a year in the UK are diagnosed with the same tumour, and of those, only two or three are incurable.

The little boy inspired thousands of people across the world after his dad shared his story on Facebook, asking people to hope for a miracle for his son.

A video of Mike dressed as Jayden’s hero Spider-Man, jumping from the roof of his home to surprise his son, went viral and has been watched by nearly 700,000 people.

Mike, who was nominated for a Pride of Britain award earlier this year, said despite focusing on the fundraising, 2015 has been very hard for the family, adding: “In some ways we have had a strong face on and got on with it. Ultimately what we do have in our mind is Jayden wouldn’t have wanted us to be down and gloomy. He would have wanted us to be happy and get on with life and do things to make people proud. It’s about giving back because that feels good.”

As well as raising more than £40,000 this year, Mike and Lou also spread some festive cheer when they delivered presents to children at Southampton hospital’s Piam Brown Unit, using £250 of their own money they had saved.

Mike told The Gazette: “As parents who have spent time in hospital at Christmas, we know only too well what it’s like, so we thought about trying to help a little by giving some Christmas cheer to the families and of course the kids in the wards. The day went amazingly well.”

Mike dressed up as Spider-Man and handed out the gifts to all the children.

He added: “The kids faces were a picture. There were loads of photos and smiles which made us feel so happy to be able to give back like this. It was so rewarding.”

To donate to Hope From Jayden visit http://spiderdad.co.uk/fund-raising-spiderdad.