It was the last day of term for many Illawarra schools, with Year 6 students enjoying their final day of primary school.

Teachers and parents had prepared fun in the playground for a group of students who had missed out on so much over the last two years.

Thursday was a day to forget about the coronavirus, homeschooling and uncertainty. It was a day to celebrate the end of a school year and look forward to the summer holiday and Term 1 with hope and a clean slate.

News of the tragic accident at Hillcrest was met with shock and grief across Australia. The five children who died and the three others being treated for serious injuries in hospital could have been any of our children.

Locally the Mercury has been running photographs of the region's school formals. Our Facebook newsfeed is full of proud parents cheering for their children who have made it through another school year.

Schools had fairground rides on their grounds, bouncy castles, balloons falling from ceilings, burger vans - anything to help our children put a smile on their faces.

The end of the school year never meant so much to our communities.

Hillcrest could have been any of our playgrounds or any of our birthday parties.

On Friday, North-West Tasmania was finding a way to somehow get through the unthinkable. Communities across Australia rallied around with their prayers, and by donating cash to a Go Fund Me set up in memory of the children.

When we can't be there to comfort in person, it seems all we can do is dip into our wallets, and at this time of writing, the fund was rising rapidly towards the $1m mark.

Today we're thinking of those beautiful children who lost their lives and the friends and family they have left behind.

As you start your summer holiday, find ways to put the smile back on the children's faces in your life.

They need it more than you'll ever know, and they deserve it.

- Gayle Tomlinson