Vicky Mitchinson

On the 16th January 2011, my lovely Mum, Jane, was out riding when she was hit from behind by a speeding van, dying by the roadside along with her horse.

The months that followed were unbearably painful for myself and my stepdad, Peter, and when I look back, I still wonder how we managed to make it through this time and the devastation that followed the crash.

Over a year later we had to re-experience the trauma, enduring a court case with a driver who seemed not to care at all and who received an insultingly lenient sentence. 

At the time of Mum's death, I hardly knew anyone who had endured losing a parent, let alone in the violent and premature fashion that this was.

Ten years later, I found RoadPeace and started working for them in the role of Support Services Coordinator.

The past year has enabled me to meet the most courageous, compassionate and eternally strong individuals and be part of an organisation that is founded on the power of empathy, care and support. They just 'get it' and I don't feel alone anymore; there are others like me.

It is truly a light for us in our darkest times and I am so proud of the work we do and the love we show for one another.