The first anniversary of the senseless murder of a much-loved teenager has been marked with a moving vigil at the spot where he was fatally wounded.
Family and friends of 18-year-old Jack Woodley gathered near the alley by the Britannia Inn in Houghton-le-Spring as darkness fell on Sunday evening.
Read more: Jack Woodley's mum still visits his grave every night
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It was here, at around 9pm on October 16 last year, he fell following a sustained and severe assault by a gang of ten teenagers, who punched, kicked and stamped on him.
It was here, a cowardly 15-year-old delivered the fatal blow in his back with a fearsome ten-inch survival knife.
It was here, paramedics fought desperately to save his young life, managing to get him to intensive care before his death the following day.
Tonight, the railings nearby have once again become a shrine, Jack’s smiling face enlarged on a fleece blanket with the words ‘Always you with me, until I see you again’.
Floral tributes fastened to the metal rails alongside cards and letters from his brothers, football shirts and scarves in his favourite colour, blue, make up the wall of love for young Jack.
A church service in his memory was held on Sunday evening at St Michael and All Angels’, a short distance from the scene of the crime.
His attackers, aged 14 to 17 at the time of the attack, are now serving life sentences, and today has also marked the anniversary of the night those young men changed their own lives forever.
The night they killed a boy.
The night they became murderers.
The savage nature of the attack has understandably sickened people across the region and also left them scared.
Jack could quite easily be their boy.
He was a young lad with his life ahead of him, leaving a fun fair with his girlfriend.
Wrong place, wrong time.
Jack could be anyone’s son.
Tonight, his mother, Zoey McGill, from Newton Aycliffe, vowed to honour his memory with her continuing campaign against knife crime.
She said: “Jack was one of a kind. He will never be forgotten.”
- You can see our live feed from the vigil with an indepth interview with Zoey McGill by clicking here
Read next:
- Powerful video shows County Durham mum singing to her murdered son on death bed
- Mum of murdered Aycliffe teen shares her feelings as Houghton Feast returns
- Aycliffe mum of Jack Woodley is 'heartbroken' after Tomasz Oleszak stabbing
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