The Baker family lost their husband and father Sam in 2023 after a long battle with cancer. At first, they felt alone.
That was until matriarch Amanda found Feel the Magic, a charity that helps grieving children heal.
The grateful Cranebrook family have since participated in Feel the Magic’s 1-in-20 Challenge, walking 120km in the month of June to raise awareness and funds for the one in 20 children that lose a parent before they turn 18.
“We raised nearly $9,000. Sam was a gardener in the area and had quite a few clients, so I hit all of them up and got some big donations for Feel the Magic. It’s to support these guys,” Amanda said while gesturing to her 10 and 11-year-old sons, Lachlan and Zachary.
“We didn’t have any support until I started researching and Feel the Magic has been amazing.”
Since finding the charity, Amanda and her sons have been to three Family Day Camps and the boys have been to Camp Magic and participated in the virtual Healthy Grieving Program.
“The boys have been to a three-day camp and Lachlan connected with his mentor on another level. His mentor Michael lost a son that was a similar age to Lachlan,” Amanda explained.
“We’ve also done a ski trip with Feel the Magic along with five other families, where we got to stay with another family that had boys of a similar age.
“These kids think they’re alone, when they’re not, and Feel the Magic helped us find a whole new family.”
To keep Sam’s spirit alive, the family visits his favourite pub every year on the anniversary of his passing.
“On dad’s anniversary, we go to his favourite pub because that’s where he always took us out to eat,” Lachlan said.
“This year we took the Cadillac as well,” Amanda continued, referring to the 1965 Cadillac that Sam left to his sons.
“All our close family have a nice pub lunch at Colyton Hotel. It was where we used to take the boys as little kids to go on the playground, and he just loved the pub.”
Find out more information and donate to the Feel the Magic cause at http://www.1in20.org.au.
Ally Hall
Ally Hall joined the Weekender in 2024, and focuses on entertainment and community stories. She's a graduate of the University of South Australia and has previously worked as a Video Journalist with Southern Cross Austereo and as a News Reader with Australian Radio Network.