Lewis's family thank Reds fans
The family of Lewis Mighty, the brave young Kopite who passed away on May 16 this year after a four-year battle with cancer, would like to send their heartfelt thanks to Liverpool fans for their support.
The day before the seven-year-old died, Liverpoolfc.com sent a special message to Lewis and his family, letting them know they were in the thoughts of everyone at the club and Reds fans responded by paying their own personal tributes.
And today Stuart Holness, a close family friend and trustee of the Lewis Mighty Fund, passed on a message of gratitude from Lewis's dad Perry, his mother Jaime and his siblings Leah and Morgan.
"The family wanted to thank all the people and all the Liverpool fans, who sent such kind messages of support to Lewis and the family," said Stuart.
"What the support from the fans did was help the family at such a difficult time and showed them just how loved Lewis was. It also demonstrated the sheer amount of affection people had for Lewis after reading his story and how everyone took him into their hearts in support of the fight he had taken up."
His dad Perry has not visited Anfield for four years and tonight he will be back on the Kop for the Udinese game.
"It will be Perry's first time out of Derby on his own without family since Lewis's death and it will be a poignant but special occasion for him," explained Stuart. "He was really keen for me to pass on a message to the Liverpool fans expressing the family's gratitude.
"They didn't feel alone in Lewis's final hours, and that was such a great comfort. The widespread support helped make a very difficult time a bit easier for them and that is why they are very grateful to the fans.
"The message of support from the club was greatly appreciated too. Jamie Carragher rang Lewis's family and spoke to them while they were in hospital in May.
"He told them the club were praying for them. He also sent down a football kit which had 'Lewis YNWA' on the back of it which was a real heart-warming gesture."
Two months after Lewis passed away, Liverpool revealed their new mascot Mighty Red to children gathered at the Boot Room Cafe at Anfield.
And Stuart believes this great friend of the Reds' young supporters, who shares one of Lewis's names, will always embody a little bit of the seven-year-old's spirit.
He explained: "It's just one more small thing that has touched us all since Lewis passed away. Mighty Red wears the No.12 and for us, Lewis Mighty was everyone's 12th man."