Michelle Moriarty was instantly besotted with Nathan Johnston, who was tall, wore Doc Martens and drove the loudest V8 in town. "Our friendship grew into something more, there was always chemistry between us," Ms Moriarty said of her teenage sweetheart. "We grew into young adults together.
" Amid the fits and starts of youthful romance the pair split in their early 20s, but reunited about a decade later in their home town of Bunbury, south of Perth. "We had this conversation that we really loved each other and wanted to be with each other and wanted to start a family," Ms Moriarty recalled. "We were together from that point on.
" Life was busy as the couple welcomed their son Cody in 2016, Ms Moriarty built her career as a social worker and Mr Johnston worked as a fly-in,-fly-out miner. One night in June 2018, the future they imagined ended when Mr Johnston died suddenly, leaving Ms Moriarty widowed at 38. She went into a profound state of shock for months, navigating life without her partner and unsure of what each day would bring.
"Words can't describe how in-depth my grief was," Ms Moriarty said. "It's not just that you're missing your person, every single aspect of your life is different." Though her family and friends rallied around her, it wasn't until she met another widow that Ms Moriarty saw a glimmer of the future.
That bond moved her to establish the Grief Connect online support page for young widows. The group - which has more than 500 members - grew beyond Ms Moria.
