‘Holte Ender in the sky’: Community rallies behind heartbroken Aston Villa loving family after loss of baby

A heartbroken family of Aston Villa megafans have paid tribute to a 'Holte Ender in the sky' after the loss of their newborn baby. Josh and Kelly Bowker, both 27, have handed down a love for the club to their three kids and had been excited to welcome another Villain into the family.

Sadly, baby Dexter developed a rare condition called Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia which affects organ placement and was born sleeping. Josh's sister Emily has launched a fundraiser on behalf of the family to help give Dexter the best funeral possible and over 100 people in the community have rallied together to contribute so far.

Emily said: "We have been Aston Villa fans for as long as I can remember! My late Grandfather was a Villa fan and used to attend matches over 70 years ago. Since then we have all followed in his Aston Villa footsteps. Josh, myself and parents all had season tickets in the Holte End when we were youngsters. We used to absolutely love going to the games.

"As children, me and Josh would spend hours cutting up claret and blue paper into little squares to take to the matches, we would share this with the other fans around us to throw into the air as the players came out onto the pitch Josh as a young boy had an Aston Villa bedroom - wallpaper, bedsheets, rugs, clocks, lamps and throws! My older brother and sister are also Villa fans, as are their children."

What goes around comes around and now Josh and Kelly's three children love watching the side.

Ava-Leigh, 10, was recently a mascot at Villa Park for the Chelsea match and took to the pitch with Douglas Luiz. Five-year-old Penny and four-year-old Harry both have Autism so can't attend matches all too frequently, but a new sensory room launched at the stadium is great news for the family - Emily tells of how Penny has already learnt to shout 'Villa' when the side is on TV.

Speaking about the fundraiser after Dexter's passing, Emily shared her hopes to help the family create a memorial in the garden as well as helping with funeral costs.

She said: "Funds that are raised were originally planned for the funeral, however, we have recently found out that most of the funeral is subsidised by the government for children, so, in turn, some of the money raised will go on extras for the funeral to ensure he has the best possible send off such as a horse and carriage.

"Any funds left will be used to create a memorial in Josh and Kel's garden, Josh is going to create this with the other children, so they can have a chance to take part in creating his memorial and being a part of it. It will be a safe place for the whole family to spend time and remember Dexter."

As well as the fundraiser, Ava-Leigh is planning to take part in an event for charity when the time is right to raise awareness around Dexter's story.

The kind-hearted youngster has already raised over £500 for the National Autism Society in the past on behalf of her siblings through a fundraising run. You can donate to The Bowker fundraiser here.