A grieving mum whose son Callum Griffiths was one of three killed in a terrible car crash has spoken about her family's "darkest days" and the organisation she says saved them. The 19-year-old from Porth was a passenger travelling in an Audi A1 on December 11 when it collided with a bus in Elwyn Street, Tonyrefail.
Jesse Owen, aged 18, from Tonypandy, and Morgan Smith, 18, from Tonypandy also lost their lives in the crash. Two others were left critically injured.
Four months on from the tragedy, Callum's mum Natalie Griffiths has described how the loss of her "caring and funny" son has impacted the family and community. She hopes to raise awareness about a "lifeline" charity, 2Wish Cymru, which she said Callum's family and friends would be "completely lost" without. For the latest Rhondda news, sign up to our newsletter here
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Paying tribute to her son, the 47-year-old told WalesOnline: "He was very much full of life, caring and funny. He had a smile that would light up a room. He was very popular with lots of friends. He was a really good friend and listener. He was hard-working and an achiever. He was a world champion kickboxer. He achieved a lot within his very short life.
"Losing Cal - for us and his friends - has devastated us all. We will never ever be the same and we are completely broken. I don’t feel anything anymore because nothing could feel as painful as this."
Natalie said the family's grief was incomparable to anything they'd ever experienced before. She said it was completely life-changing for each of them, as well as for Callum's many friends. "The grief has completely changed our lives," she said. "I’ve gone from someone who I considered to be a very strong person, to someone who has been in some very dark places and requires a lot of support and help.
"Our lives will never be the same again. Every day it feels like I’m on a life sentence because every day will be difficult. A son we have loved for 18 years is no longer physically here with us and it has left a massive void."
Having experienced such intense heartache, Natalie praised the help she had received from 2Wish Cymru. The organisation supports parents, siblings, family members and friends affected by sudden and unexpected deaths of a child or adult aged 25 and under. Support award-winning journalism with WalesOnline’s Premium app on Apple or Android
"I always say that 2Wish has saved us," she said. "They’ve gotten us out of a really dark place. Through the support groups I’m able to connect with other families who have lost children, which is a very different kind of loss. I’ve suffered grief previously, but the loss of a child is very, very different and even though we have a fabulous support network around us, unless you have suffered the loss of a child you don’t know how that feels; trying to get yourself up out of bed every morning."
Natalie said the charity had helped her in so many ways. Aside from vital counselling sessions, she said they could also help with basic difficulties such as doing the food shop and organising doctor's appointments. She said they even helped with more personal challenges, such as supporting Callum's sister and organising keepsakes to keep Callum's memory alive.
She explained: "2Wish has supported us as a family, from the very outset they came to our house [and] we had sessions with them. They also did very personal things for us such as hand and foot prints of Callum. I attend support groups such as coffee mornings with them and have counselling sessions through them. My daughter has a specific children’s worker. It has been hugely helpful having 2Wish.
"You can call them up at any time, and Callum’s star is at the centre in Llantrisant so I am able to pop down there whenever I need to, they also come and support us for fundraising events when we raise money for them."
Natalie said that due to the nature of Callum's death, the family was automatically referred to the charity, however she stressed that anyone could make a referral if they had been affected by the sudden death of a young person. She said many of Callum's friends had benefited from its services.
"They have helped the family but also a lot of Callum’s friends who have been devastated by such a loss - some of whom had probably never been to a funeral before...I’ve been able to make referrals for Callum’s friends, but they can make referrals for themselves."
To give something back to 2Wish Cymru, Callum's family, along with 60 of his friends, have been working hard to raise money. Over the last 16 weeks, they have raised almost £6,000 for the charity through organising events including coffee mornings, walks and band nights.
The next big event will be a 19-mile walk between Treherbert and Porth, held from April 20 to April 21. Natalie said she hoped it would keep Callum's memory alive, as well as open up a conversation about grief and mental wellbeing. Money raised will specifically go towards 2Wish Cymru's young person services, such as counselling and play therapy.
Bright pink t-shirts will be worn which read "forever 19" and "Griff", which was Callum's nickname. The words "dream big" will also feature on the tops, which was a saying very close to Callum's heart.
Natalie said: "He used to use that saying because he was a barber and very much into his music, especially rap and grime. There’s a rapper called Clavish who he was a big fan of and Callum's big dream mission for 2024 was to cut Clavish’s hair. He always had big dreams he wanted to strive for. [A family member] managed to reach out to Clavish after Callum passed and he sent a message saying “rest in peace” which we now have framed." So far, more than 170 t-shirts have been sold.
Natalie said the walkers would carry buckets for donations on the day, but that anyone unable to attend who would like to make a donation could do so here. More details about the event are available on the public Facebook page.
Summing up why she wanted to raise money for the charity, Natalie, who is now a volunteer, said: "I think 2wish is absolutely vital. They are life changing in respect of getting people through their darkest days. Without them we would be completely lost navigating a journey that [we wouldn't] understand. They are a lifeline through the darkest journey anyone could go through."
