A grieving mother was shocked after learning that her deceased son’s headstone has been removed just because of a single complaint.
Jo Corbett-Weeks, a 42-year-old mother, is outraged with council chiefs after they authorized the removal of her son’s star-shaped headstone. The said complaint came from a member of another family who claimed that it wasn’t “in keeping” with the rest of the cemetery.
Corbett-Weeks son Max was just four years old when he died from his illnesses. Max, had a number of health issues when he was born. The most serious issue was epilepsy. Corbett-Week didn’t have enough money when Max first died, so she saved up money for three years.
She saved up $4,580 to design a specially-made headstone for her baby boy. The headstone featured a teddy bear holding a star inscribed with a tribute to her son.
this is so wrong there is nothing about this head stone i can see offending just 1 person who cant leave it alone https://t.co/Uvid2bo3qA
— hans oliver (@temptationsn) December 29, 2019
Her happiness didn’t last long after it was removed three days later from the family plot in the town cemetery.
Max’s headstone was removed from the grave without his mother’s permission or knowledge. The reason given was that plans for it were not approved in advance. Also, it was different from the other headstones, and someone had complained because it was unlike the others because of its shape.
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Corbett-Weeks, who has two other children ages 16 and 5, said in a statement:
“It would have been Max’s seventh birthday on Sunday, and this was like a birthday present to him from me. I chose a star-shaped stone because I wanted something suitable for Max – something personal.”
“This stone is just so perfect for my poor little chap,” she added.
A single-family complained to the town council that the star-and-bear design made the headstone stand out from among the others. It gave a different look to the cemetery because no other graves were decorated like the children.
Corbett-Weeks explained:
“I was totally unaware this was going on. The council did not contact me and it was the stonemason who told me he’d been ordered to remove it. I feel upset, distressed, and angry. We have been through so much as a family. I could understand if the grave was uncared for or unsightly, but it isn’t.”
“The headstone meant a lot to me and the family but now we are fighting to have it put back,” she said.
“It’s a horrible situation. We just want to have somewhere to grieve,” she added.
The memorial was placed in the adult area of the cemetery, where Corbett-Weeks had her son buried so that he could be close to other family members.
A Malvern Town Council spokesman explained to BBC:
“We have conformity of shapes in our lawn cemetery. We were contacted by people who objected to the shape. The longer it stayed up, the harder the process would have been. It was a very difficult decision to remove it but one we had to make straight away,” the spokesman said.
A spokesperson for the Malvern Town Council said it was a difficult decision to remove the headstone, but it was necessary because of the rules of the cemetery.
The council explained that if Max had been buried in the children’s area, there would not have been a problem. He was buried in the adult section to be close to family members. As of now, Max’s mother is still fighting to have the headstone replaced.
Sources: AWM, Buzz, US Blasting