Blue Mountains residents have held a candlelight vigil for Russell and Ben Smith, the two young boys found dead in their Faulconbridge home last week. or signup to continue reading The low-key show of support was held in Springwood's Buttenshaw Park on Saturday night, September 14. The simple, informal ceremony was open to the community and did not feature any speeches.
Many residents hung paper hearts with touching messages from a gum tree in the park. One resident who attended the vigil described it as "an hour of quiet meditation with respect for those dear little boys and their extended family". Our Lady of the Nativity School in Lawson, where the boys attended, issued a statement following the tragedy, saying the school community was "devastated by the tragic deaths".
"Counselling and wellbeing support is available to students and staff at Our Lady of the Nativity...
and will continue to be provided in the coming weeks," the statement from the Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese said. "The care and kindness of the broader Blue Mountains community at this difficult time is much appreciated." Political leaders in the Blue Mountains reacted to the news with words of comfort and advice on how to seek support.
Blue Mountains MP Trish Doyle described the tragic circumstances as "beyond harrowing". "My heart goes out to the family, local community, friends, schools and our first responders - who faced awful scenes today. We are all reeling from this shocking incident," she posted on social media.
"I feel deep sorrow, as many of you would, at the loss of two darling children. I am lost for words." Federal Member for Macquarie Susan Templeman described the news as "heartbreaking".
"My deepest sympathies to their family and loved ones. I'm also thinking of the emergency services workers who attended today. "This tragedy will be felt by many and there are resources for parents from for parents and caregivers on how to support children through grief.
" Blue Mountains mayor Mark Greenhill said "our community has lost two precious souls in the most awful circumstances and I know this will affect us all in some way". "Now is a time to come together and remember these two beautiful children and their extended family whose grief must be unimaginable." Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date.
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