Thomas was born on 11th July 2000 and died on the 17th July 2001. Cause of Death: Heart Failure (He had had major (and seemingly successful) heart surgery at a few months of age - However, as the scar tissue from this operation grew, it blocked the electrical impulses to his heart and he died suddenly after becoming ill a few days before).

The following was taken from a speech at Thomas' funeral:

"Thomas James was born exactly 1 year and two weeks ago today but most of you who met him would not have known him as Thomas James. He was more often known as Tj, Thomas Bear or Mr. Cheeky. Mr. Cheeky was the name we used for him most of the time and it just seemed to fit him perfectly.

As you know, Thomas was born with his own set of concerns for us. We must admit we found these rather overwhelming at the beginning but with the help and support from a lot of people who are here today we came to accept and embrace them. Through Thomas we have made a lot of new friends and our lives and this room are much fuller because of him.

Thomas was a great little boy, we could not have asked for a better baby. He slept through the night from 6 weeks and was always happy and full of joy. The only time he was crabby was when he was hungry and tired much like most of the people here we expect.

Thomas seemed to have an inner magnet, he attracted adults and children to him and sucked them in with his warmth and innocence, then when they were under his spell he would pull their hair and pinch their noses. This was his way of showing his affection.

Thomas was very young when he died. When an older person dies we often say "it's ok they had a good innings". Thomas may not have had a very long innings but he certainly scored a lot of runs.

We would like to thank you all not only for the love and support you have shown us over the last week but also from the day Thomas was born. We would not be as strong today if it were not for all of you.

We would now like to play two pieces of music that mean a lot to us and Thomas. The first is a track that we heard only a few days ago and sums up our feelings even though it talks about a little girl and not a little boy. The second was Thomas's favourite song that we used to sing to him all the time."