LONDON, England — Tragically, a family of Jaguars fans living in the U.K. will be watching Sunday’s game with the Texans at Wembley Stadium without a loved one.
“Jacksonville really is a second home to us, and it’s somewhere that we all fell in love with as a family,” said Robert Edgar, the father of Noah, 5, and Dylan, 7.
The Edgars came over twice from Colchester, England when little Noah was diagnosed with a rare form of eye cancer at only 18 months.
He now wears a prosthetic, but Robert credits the doctor's at UF Health's Proton Therapy Institute with saving Noah's life.
They all took an allegiance to a certain team in teal home with them.
“And now the Jacksonville Jaguars are our NFL team,” Edgar said.
But, tragically, the boys’ mom, Gemma, was enduring a fight of her own the entire time, an inoperable brain tumor.
RELATED:
- Jaguars now giving warnings to tailgaters to pack up 30 minutes before kickoff
- Myles Jack provides one-time donation to 31 elderly JEA customers
- Report: Jacksonville Jaguars CB Jalen Ramsey asked for trade
- Jacksonville Jaguars employee competes on Jeopardy's 36th season premiere
That didn't stop the do-it-all mom.
“She was even running, whilst on chemotherapy she was running the London Marathon,” Edgar said.
In October 2018, doctors told the Edgars that after two surgeries, there was nothing more they could do for Gemma.
“That weekend, I had the most difficult conversation I’ve ever had in my life where I told Noah and Dylan, our two boys, that mummy wasn’t going to come home,” Edgar said.
Gemma passed in December, but she leaves behind a legacy of love.
“She lived every day as if it were her last, and she was an example to all of us,” Edgar said.
Robert and the boys hope fans enjoy the game Sunday and hold their loved ones a bit closer while they do.
STAY UPDATED: Download the Action News Jax app for live updates on breaking stories