Grief is a part of life but some people are forced to face it earlier than others. A 'grief camp' in regional Queensland is bringing together kids who have lost a loved one, igniting calls for more programs like it across the state.
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00:00Four days of independence is typically a teenage dream.
00:06But this is a summer camp Alexis Versace did not want to attend.
00:11So my dad passed away when I was 10.
00:14He passed away in a truck accident in Pilbara.
00:17Yeah, that's why I'm here I guess.
00:25When Angelo Versace died on the job four years ago,
00:28Alexis found grief to be a lonely experience.
00:32I didn't really know what I was supposed to do,
00:34how I was supposed to feel.
00:36Desperate for community, her mum heard about a grief camp for kids
00:40who have lost parents or siblings.
00:42When I saw it I was like, yes, this is what my girls need
00:47and I actually wish I had have known of this three years ago
00:53when it all happened, started for us.
00:55With no programs like it in their hometown of Mackay,
00:58she drove her three daughters eight hours south to Harvey Bay to attend.
01:02And I'm not going to lie to you, we got here in the morning,
01:04we woke up and they were like, nah, get us out of here,
01:07I don't want to go here.
01:08And now they're here today and they don't want to leave.
01:10From candlelit vigils to kayaking,
01:13the camp offers grief support services with a side of adventure.
01:17So while these kids came to camp with shared experience
01:20in the loss of their loved ones,
01:22us facilitating opportunities for them to have shared memories
01:26is really how the balance is cemented.
01:28One in 20 Australian children will experience the loss of a parent or sibling.
01:34The camp organisers and families are calling for more programs
01:38that connect grieving kids to others who can relate to their experience.
01:43That it's something that every child who has experienced grief should try
01:48because it's really good.
01:50So proud. So proud.
01:54New memories made amid the grief.