A heartbroken widow who lost her two sons in a tragic murder-suicide has opened up about moving forward and finding love again.
Melissa Little was 29 when her husband Damien, 33, shot four-year-old Koda and nine-month-old Hunter before driving off a wharf with the boys in the car.
Damien, who had not sought help for his severe mental illness, turned the gun on himself before steering the car into the sea at Port Lincoln, South Australia, in 2016.
Melissa met her new partner Lachy and they now have a four-month-old daughter called Lola
‘I was notified by the police. But when you love and trust someone, you never in your wildest dreams think that they are capable of such an event as this,’ she told The Project.
‘It’s something that I’ve had to compartmentalise. I’ve had to put that day aside ’cause that’s not how I want to remember my boys,’ she said.
Melissa decided to tackle the Kokoda Trail, which Koda was named after, as part of her healing process.
It was during training where she met her new partner Lachy and they now have a four-month-old daughter called Lola.
‘We connected on a level that I didn’t know that I guess that I was ready to trust again,’ she said.
Still devastated by the tragedy, Ms Little has written a children’s book to help kids deal with grief, and is calling for mental illness to be taken more seriously.
A heartbroken widow has opened up about coming to terms with her grief after losing her sons in a shocking murder-suicide (pictured is the Little family)
Damien, who had not sought help for his severe mental illness, turned the gun on himself before steering the car into the sea at Port Lincoln, South Australia, in 2016 (pictured is the funeral)
‘I would have never thought I would lose a child, let alone both children,’ Ms Little told New Idea.
The grieving mother said she reacted to the news of the horrific murders by asking why Damien had done it, but has since accepted she will never have an answer.
‘I will never understand why and I will never accept what has happened. Even having a mental illness does not excuse this behaviour,’ she said.
She said her husband was in denial, and really believed that he did not have a problem with his mental health.
Despite not knowing how people who don’t think they need help can be convinced to get treated, she said it is clear that mental illness needs to be addressed.
‘It’s sad enough that people have to suffer these dreadful illnesses, but what is even sadder and unthinkable is when kids have to suffer,’ Ms Little said.
After losing Koda and Hunter Ms Little witnessed her son’s friends try to cope with their loss, which motivated her to write a children’s book about grief.
She said her husband was in denial, and really believed that he did not have a problem with his mental health (pictured is a memorial card for Damien, Koda and Hunter Little)
After losing Koda and Hunter Ms Little witnessed their friends try to cope with loss, which motivated her to write a children’s book about grief (pictured is a mourner laying a floral tribute)
She hopes the book, titled Yesterday You Were Here, will help other children to deal with the loss of friends and siblings.
Speaking out about mental illness, Ms Little said she still struggles to understand it, and wonders whether it is ever possible to know what another person is thinking.
She believes Australia needs to get serious about mental health issues to prevent its devastating effects on the families and loved ones of sufferers.
Pictured is the car Damien Little drove into the ocean at Port Lincoln with his two sons inside
‘I would have never thought I would lose a child, let alone both children,’ Ms Little said (pictured are Koda and Hunter Little)