Five-year-old Joseph Vince has not had it easy ... but his struggle for life has lit up everyone who knows him.

And tomorrow he will switch on the Christmas lights which will light up Mersea.

Joseph, of Firs Road, West Mersea, was born with a hole-in-the-heart. At 18 months old, a temporary shunt was installed. When he was three, he had the hole sealed.

Mother Toni Vince said: "Every year is a year more than we hoped."

Joseph was selected to turn on the lights by hairdresser Jo Tyrrell who said: "We wanted a child to switch on the lights rather than the mayor or whoever. We thought it would be nice for Joseph to do it."

Joseph, a pupil of Mersea Island School, still regularly visits hospital. But Mrs Vince said: "He's always been a little fighter. We never gave up on him."

Mersea lights celebrity - Joseph Vince

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