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A disco-themed poster has been on the wall since Matilda Bee Britvan’s 10th birthday.
It should have been replaced on Saturday with one marking her 11th birthday. Instead, the poster – a long-running tradition for family birthdays – will retain its pride of place in Matilda’s Banksia home in Sydney’s south.
Matilda is forever 10, the youngest victim of the Bondi Beach massacre where 15 mostly Jewish people were killed on the first night of Hanukkah last year.
On Saturday, her parents Valentyna and Michael, sister Summer, 7, and brother Vadym, 24, face a heartbreaking anniversary. It will be Matilda’s birthday, the first since she was killed on December 14.
“Summer really wants us to have a party for Matilda,” Valentyna says over lunch at Maroubra Beach before Matilda’s birthday.
Valentyna was reluctant to organise anything, fearful of how she would feel when the day arrived. But for Summer’s sake, the family plan to spend the day at their favourite spot on the banks of the Cooks River.
They will invite friends for a small celebration at a restaurant that was Matilda’s favourite.
The area holds a special place in their hearts because it was where Matilda and Summer would ride their bikes and scooters together. In September, Bayside Council renamed Cahill Park in Wolli Creek, the Matilda Bee Playground.
Matilda’s beloved bike has not been used since that fateful December day but Valentyna says they will get around to teaching Summer to ride.
Summer is lost without her big sister. The pair shared a room, played together and were always close. But she is also a source of comfort for her parents. “Summer keeps us getting up every day,” Valentyna says.
As grief swamped the family after the horror of Bondi, Valentyna and Michael managed to find some joy. The pair married at Admiralty House in March, after Governor-General Sam Mostyn opened up her official Sydney residence for them to host an intimate wedding.
It was meant to be a private affair, until Valentyna’s sister-in-law inadvertently livestreamed it on social media. Valentyna laughed off the accidental tech fail and was more interested in showing off her custom-made wedding band, which features a tiny inscription of a bee, in memory of Matilda.
The couple wore outfits in the Ukrainian national colours, in a nod to their home country. Valentyna was in a sky-blue dress while Michael sported yellow shoes. A small gold bee was on Valentyna’s veil.
The bee has become a symbol of hope and kindness for the Britvan family. Valentyna says her husband chose Bee as a middle name because he wanted something short and sweet to go with the Australian name they had settled on for their firstborn daughter.
Michael now runs the Matilda Bee Foundation, which produces pins, stickers and tote bags emblazoned with a bee in memory of Matilda.
The family is also preparing to move into a new home in Arncliffe which they were able to buy with significant donations raised through a GoFundMe page set up by Matilda’s language teacher Irina Goodhew immediately after the tragedy.
Valentyna, who was thrust into the national spotlight after Matilda’s death, is full of gratitude for the support her family has been shown in the months since the shooting. As well as donations, the Jewish community has provided the financial means for Summer to attend the Emanuel School, a Jewish school in Randwick.
It is this unwavering support that has given Valentyna the strength to attend almost nightly functions.
“The community was so good to us so we have to give back. We never say no to events,” Valentyna says.
And as for Matilda’s birthday poster, Valentyna says she will take it with them to their new house, where she plans to frame it in memory of their little girl who will be forever 10.
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