Woman’s Day (Australia)

‘THERE’S LIGHT IN THE DARK DAYS’

Twelve month on, Lisa Curry has vowed to find peace with the heartbreak­ing loss of her daughter

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The sparkle in her eyes has dimmed and her incredible zest for life has been largely missing ever since Lisa Curry had to say goodbye to her beautiful eldest daughter Jaimi, who secretly battled her demons for much of her adult life.

But a couple of weeks ago as Lisa and her family prepared for the first emotional anniversar­y of Jaimi’s tragic death, she vowed that from now on she would be at peace with her past, in love with her present and excited about her future.

“This is what I’m waking up to achieve each day from this day onwards,” Lisa posted to the 113,000 people who follow her on Instagram and have seen her heartbreak­ing posts about the loss of her first-born child.

Jaimi was just 33 when Lisa and her ex-husband, ironman

legend Grant Kenny, were called to the Sunshine Coast University Hospital on September 13 last year to comfort their beloved oldest daughter in her final days.

“It was like they just ripped our hearts out. Total disbelief… and even though we’d prepared ourselves for the worst for weeks, months and even years and thought we were prepared… nothing … absolutely nothing prepares you for that moment or those words.”

The tragedy touched millions of Aussies, who feel like they’ve grown up with the golden couple of Australian sport, sharing in many family milestones. And Jaimi had a special place in people’s hearts because she was Lisa’s “little mascot” poolside and “everyone’s favourite little girl”.

On the surface, Jaimi often appeared to be bright and bubbly, but in private she was trying to overcome a severe long-term eating disorder.

REMEMBERIN­G JAIMI

This week will be particular­ly hard for Lisa, 59, and Grant, 58, who are still struggling to come to terms with the tragedy of losing their eldest child at such a young age when “kind, loving and sensitive” Jaimi had so much to offer and live for.

“Jaimi left a huge hole in all their hearts,” says one close friend, who says that privately Lisa puts on a brave face but is still understand­ably struggling to cope with the loss, and hopes that the 12-month anniversar­y may prove to be a turning point.

“The loss of a child doesn’t go away in weeks or months. She

‘Life is precious and there’s so much to look forward to’

still howls with the pain of it. But she does sound better day by day, and she’s really lucky to have a very warm and open man like [husband] Mark [Tabone] to support her.

“The grief has also brought the whole family closer together. Jett is still living at home with his dad and Morgan and [her husband] Ryan and their two boys have also moved in,” says our source.

“Lisa often has the two boys stay overnight. And she and Grant are still best friends.”

Lisa is blessed to have the support of her son, Jett, 27, and daughter Morgan, 30, who gave birth to Taj Grant, now 10 months, shortly after Jaimi’s untimely death. It’s spending precious moments with Taj and his three-year-old brother Flynn that has provided some solace to Lisa.

“Lisa has them over for sleepovers, which is incredibly healing for them all,” explains her close friend.

“She and Mark often take their kombi van down to Maroochydo­re from their place in the hinterland and stay at the local caravan park just to spend time with the boys and give them a fun adventure.”

But even with all that love, the tragedy is still taking a toll on the former Olympic swimmer, who just two months ago was admitted to hospital with chest pain that left doctors stumped.

“You can’t test for heartache”, was how Lisa explained it.

She has been journallin­g to document her painful experience with grief and hopes to write a book to inspire other mums dealing with loss, as well as encouragin­g her fans to carry on no matter what pain they are dealing with.

“Keep fighting and don’t give up. Where there is life there is hope. Life is so precious and there’s so much to look forward to,” she recently posted.

“Jaimi was so loved and is so missed. We hide our tears when we say her name, but the pain in our hearts is still the same. Rememberin­g our Jaimi."

 ??  ?? The Queensland clan are sticking close together in their grieving.
The Queensland clan are sticking close together in their grieving.
 ??  ?? Lisa also has husband Mark by her side to support her.
Lisa also has husband Mark by her side to support her.
 ??  ?? Lisa often has her beloved grandsons stay over.
Lisa often has her beloved grandsons stay over.
 ??  ??

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