Helen Arkadieff had been holidaying with her husband and two young sons when a tragic set of freak circumstances ripped her away from those she loved the most.
The Brisbane woman had travelled back to her hometown in Britain to see her family, particularly her father, who had been ill, and was climbing the stairs to go to bed when she fell backwards, hitting her head.
Mrs Arkadieff had horrific head injuries and spent days in a coma as doctors tried desperately to help her. She died on January 2, four days after the fateful fall.
Her husband Murray told the Courier Mail his wife was a strong woman, who believed deeply in equality, loved rugby, and adored her family.
Helen Arkadieff (right) was enjoying the holidays with her Australian family and her British parents when she slipped on a set of stairs
Mrs Arkadieff, a respected medico-legal professional, was ‘unselfish’, he said.
Her final act was to donate her organs: so the pain of the others would be lessened.
In tribute to the beloved mother, daughter and wife, friends and family have shared pictures and memories of the 38-year-old, which will be turned into a book for her sons, Sammy, five, and Jimmy, three.
Those who loved her are also raising funds to help finish the work Mrs Arkadieff started.
The family had moved into their brand new house just days before flying to England, and a lot of work is still required to turn it into a home.
The 38-year-old leaves behind her husband Murray, a beekeeper, and her two boys, aged three and five
‘When the time comes for Murray to bring the boys home – the house they are coming back to is just that- a house… but not yet a home,’ a statement from Mrs Arkadieff’s family read.
‘All the wonderful touches that Helen would have loved to have brought to her new house- are still required.
‘The yard is still a construction site, the windows have no blinds, there is minimal furniture, no pictures on the walls etc.
‘We’d love to help not only finish the house for this grieving family but help set up Murray and the boys for the next while so they can function without having to even think about all the things they will need.’
The statement says the family want to help landscape and fence the family yard, set up the boys for school and fill the fridge with food.
‘We need to furnish the house so it feels abundant, loved and like it can hold this grieving family if they just want to shut the blinds and bunker in,’ it read.
Tributes on the page, written by friends and family to be given to the two young boys, remembered an ‘ambitious baker’, who always looked at her sons with ‘loving eyes’.
Friends and family remembered a woman who looked at her sons with ‘loving eyes’, who loved the rugby
Mrs Arkadieff had moved across the world for the love of her life, her sister-in-law said
‘I remember the last time saw her, she was telling me about how Jimmy Jack was splashing around in the bath in the new house,’ one read.
‘And mummy said “Jimmy, stop that, it’s not funny”, and you Jimmy Jack looked up at mummy with your big beautiful cheeky eyes and said ‘ it’s just a little funny’ using your fingers to show a little bit.
‘She laughed so hard when she told us this story and told us how she had a very cheeky boy on her hands!’
Her sister-in-law Lynette said Mrs Arkadieff was a ‘complex’ person, who was elegant, carefree and loved rugby.
‘I loved the way she looked at Murray (my brother) and her boys,’ she wrote.
‘She was content, proud of her family, sure and solid in who she was and what she loved.
‘I will miss her and her presence in our family so much. We lost something incredibly important in losing Helen.’
‘We lost something incredibly important in losing Helen,’ her sister-in-law said