Just five months ago, 15-year-old Amelie Linsey and her brother, Daniel, 19, spent a joyful Christmas holiday in Newport Beach in California as they do every year.
On Friday they will be buried in that coastal town where their father, Matthew, was born.
On Tuesday, parents Matthew and Angelina and brother Ethan, 11, flew to the states to prepare for the funeral while the American Embassy repatriated the bodies.
Amelie and Daniel were killed in a terror attack in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday as they ate breakfast with their father – they were due to fly home later that day.
Amelie (bottom second from right) and Daniel (far left) with their parents Matthew and Angelina, their older brother David (centre) and younger brother Ethan (bottom right) on holiday in Newport Beach, California where they used to go each year for Christmas
Daniel, 19, (left) and Amelie, 15, were murdered in a hotel blast on Easter Sunday while eating breakfast with their father Matthew
In Saturday’s Mail, their brother, David, spoke with a strength of character beyond his 21 years with his mother, Angelina.
It was the first time she spoken about her devastating loss and she described her children quite simply as ‘her best friends.’
The family want to bury Amelie and Daniel, who like their siblings have dual UK and American citizenship, in Newport Beach where they shared so many precious times on their annual Christmas holiday.
David said: ‘We have had so many happy times there. It was the town we went every year and it is where my grandmother lived. It is much more peaceful there.
Amelie on Newport Beach in California where the family go each year for Christmas
‘My dad is a bit better, my mum is a little better. I’m very worried about my brother. It is going to be very hard for my parents this week flying out.’
The family wanted to bury their children, who were killed in such a violent act, somewhere they can finally find peace.
This annual holiday to California was a particularly fond time for the family.
David, who like his siblings was raised in his father’s Jewish faith fondly remembers dropping his mother, a Catholic, off at church for mass on Christmas day.
‘I always remember on Christmas day when the roads were empty, my dad would go down to a parking lot and we would all sit on his lap and take turns moving the steering wheel of the car. We all did it as kids,’ David said.
‘We never thought that Amelie would not reach the age where she could drive herself. That’s the saddest thing for all of us – but saddest for her.’
David, who joins his family in California today, delayed joining them to speak at a conference about tackling extremism.
Hosted by one of Britain’s wealthiest businessmen, Malik Karim, David had intended to go to the conference before the terror attack.
Following the death of his siblings, he was determined to address the crowd and speak about his family’s fundraising efforts.
He has set up a charity called The Amelie and Daniel Linsey Foundation in memory of his siblings kind and giving spirit.
The Foundation aims to find some humanity following such a terrible act, and raise money for the families of Sri Lankan victims as well as providing surgical training for the hospital where Amelie and Daniel were taken.
‘I now realise that I have been given a voice and I believe it is the right thing to do to use this platform to speak for those whose voices are not being heard,’ he said.
Matthew Linsey with Daniel and Amelie in 2011, both of whom were murdered on Easter Sunday (left) and Amelie with her mother Angelina (right)
Amelie’s brother David with her on her 15th birthday in January this year in London
‘These are the families of the more than 250 innocent Sri Lankan victims.
‘With their sole breadwinner gone, who knows how many families may fall into poverty, let alone be able to afford for their children the education to escape it.’
Until a few weeks ago, David was preparing for his finals in economics and management at Oxford.
In his determination to ensure his brother and sisters spirits live on, he has now decided to defer his studies and focus his energy on the Foundation.
David added: ‘Amelie and Daniel were beautiful caring people. We hope not to move on but to continue their giving spirit.’
In an interview with the Mail on Saturday, he described how his sister was always there for his siblings and would let her little brother sleep in her bed.
He added that his brother, Daniel, had spent time doing charity work, volunteering at a village in Ethiopia.
Within 48 hours the fund attracted more than £20,000, but the family hope to raise £750,000.
Addressing the crowd before introducing David, who is a close family friend, Mr Karim said: ‘This is an issue casting an ominous cloud on civil society.
‘Not only is our faith being hijacked by extremists but that the media narrative, dinner party chatter and policy response often seem one dimensional.
‘We seem only to have a hammer in our toolbox and therefore every problem is a nail.
The Linsey Family at the Taj Mahal in India in 2014 – father Matthew, mother Angelina and Daniel (left), Ethan (front), Amelie and David (far right)
‘This is not a criticism of all the good work being done by government and the counter-terrorism community but a gentle plea that we need to revisit our approach and effectiveness.’
‘David has shown incredible courage and been very thoughtful and measured in expressing his grief,’ he added.
Mr Karim, whose financial investment company has investments worth £30 billion, arrived in the UK as a 12-year-old after being forced to flee Uganda under Idi Amin’s tyrannical regime.
The family’s fundraising efforts have already touched hundreds of people.
One donator on the page said: ‘Sincere condolences for your loss and setting up this foundation is a really admirable and caring thing to do.’
Another stated: ‘My heart goes to your family and all families affected by this tragedy. What you are trying to achieve is extremely inspiring.’
A map showing where the eight blasts went off , six of them in very quick succession on Easter Sunday morning
Sri Lankan Police officer inspects a blast spot at the Shangri-la hotel in Colombo where the Linsey children were eating on Easter Sunday
The wreckage is inspected by police after bombs hit the Shangri-La hotel in Colombo during the Easter Sunday massacres
Some anonymous donors have given £500 each.
At the conference, David received a standing ovation as he concluded: ‘The fight against extremism must ultimately be won in the mind. Radical moderates must win the ideological battle against extremists.
‘I would like us all to remember that today is not a time for hate, it is a time for love and more importantly a time for learning.
‘It is a time to support the victims and in doing so show whoever did this to us that we value life more than they seek death.’
Donations can be made to The Amelie & Daniel Linsey Foundation with cheques payable to The Amelie & Daniel Linsey Foundation and posted to The Daily Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TT OR use online banking to make a transfer to Account Name: The Amelie & Daniel, Sort Code: 50-00-00, Account Number: 20769512
There is also a Just Giving page here.