Rosie Batty could never have predicted that her son wouldn’t return home on that fateful February evening in 2014.
Luke Batty, just 11 years old at the time, was murdered by his own father when a mundane cricket training session turned into a tragedy.
“I’d like to think that Luke had no idea what was coming and the blow to the back of the head either pretty much killed him or knocked him to the point where he had no idea what came next,” a teary Rosie previously told The Australian’s Women’s Weekly.
“He had a great experience beforehand. He was happy.”
“All the fond memories of him growing up are now tragic memories,” Rosie said in a 2014 interview with The Weekly.
This week, had his precious life not been cut short, Luke would have celebrated his 15th birthday. To mark the occasion, Rosie took to the Luke Batty Foundation’s Facebook page with a heartbreaking birthday wish.
“Happy birthday to my beautiful Luke. We all miss you so much,” she penned. “I am celebrating you today. There’s an entire community campaigning for change in your memory. We’ve achieved a lot since we started Never Alone two years ago to this day.
“I know you’d be really proud of us. From Mum.”
The mother-son duo before Luke’s death.
In a previous interview with The Weekly, Rosie recalled the horrifying moments after her son’s death, explaining how she never got to hold him, or even say goodbye.
“I wasn’t allowed to go near him because it was a crime scene,” she tells us. “And that’s when I did get a bit upset because I said, ‘That’s my little boy out there, all on his own’, and they said, ‘We’re taking care of him, Rosie, it’s okay’. That was my little boy out there. They said, ‘Rosie, I don’t think you’d want to see him.'”
The following day, she bravely began a public campaign to raise awareness in the fight against domestic violence. Her tireless work awarded her the title of Australian of the Year in 2015 – it was an honour she dedicated to Luke.
To find out more about Rosie’s incredible fight, or to donate to The Luke Batty Foundation and Never Alone campaign, click here.
If you or someone you know is suffering domestic or family violence, contact 1800 RESPECT for help.
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