The pain of losing her eldest child will never leave Kiama mother Denise Adams, but a support group for bereaved parents helped her rebuild her life.
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Two decades on, Mrs Adams feels strong enough to offer other parents, grandparents and siblings who have lost a loved one the same support.
This week she is launching a Kiama chapter of The Compassionate Friends - a national non-religious, non-profit organisation that has been supporting families after the death of a child for almost 40 years.
"Our daughter Peta died due to illness 20 years ago, aged 21. I definitely was in shock for a long time, and someone mentioned The Compassionate Friends to me as a chapter was running in Kiama at that time.
"I found it was so helpful to be with people who had also lost a child - they understood just what it was like."
Mrs Adams is one of hundreds of bereaved parents across the country who are trained to use their own grief, compassion and understanding to help others who have lost a child to suicide, accident or disease.
"As much as friends and family were absolutely wonderful, life goes back to normal for other people but as a parent you still need something," she said.
"Compassionate Friends ... provided comfort and support at a time that's just unimaginable for most people."
Re-establishing a Kiama support group is Mrs Adams way of "giving back" and she urged bereaved parents to come along. The group will meet on the first Thursday of each month. Call 0408 360 034 for more information.