A YEAR ago Paula Ewers was making plans for the future with her soldier boyfriend Corporal Andrew Roberts.

But in a few moments she was left devastated after he was killed in an explosion in Afghanistan last May.

Cpl Roberts, 32, and colleague Private Ratu Silibaravi – both of 23 Pioneer Regiment, based at St David’s Barracks, near Bicester – died when a mortar shell exploded inside their forward operating base in Helmand province.

In the weeks after his death Miss Ewers learned that Cpl Roberts – nicknamed Ginge – had planned to propose to her. Now, a year on, she is still trying to come to terms with his death.

To mark the first anniversary, Miss Ewers’ son, Josh Easterbrook, will today have his head shaved to raise cash for the Invicta Foundation, which supports injured troops returning from Afghanistan.

The 32-year-old, of Leach Road, Bicester, met and fell in love with father-of-three Cpl Roberts in 2009 and the couple planned to move to his hometown in Middlesborough when he left the Army.

Miss Ewers, a unit assistant at Cherwood House Nursing Home, said: “If it wasn’t for Josh I would have curled up and given up.

“The whole year has been full of one thing after the other – you have to keep putting a fake smile on and you don’t have time to properly grieve.

“We had a lot of plans. All we kept looking at was it was the last time he was going to be away and we would have the normal life we had planned.

“He had spoken to his dad and was going to ask me to marry him.

“Because of his job I tried to prepare myself for him coming back with missing limbs, but nothing prepares you for them not to come back at all.”

Miss Ewers and her son spent the anniversary of Cpl Roberts’ death in Middlesborough with his parents Stephen and Pauline at an event which raised more than £4,000 for the charity.

St Edburg’s School pupil Josh now hopes to boost the charity’s funds by shaving his head. He will go under the clippers at Andy’s Barber’s at 5pm.

Although Josh was not Cpl Roberts’ son, the nine-year-old looked to him as a father figure.

Miss Ewers said his death had hit the schoolboy hard.

“One thing I’m grateful for is that he did have Ginge in his life.

“He was a role model and it’s good that he can take away the things they did together.”

Donate at mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/josh