Kelsey Parker has been commended for her honest message to fans at the start of the year.
As well as being a business owner, Parker is the widow of The Wanted star Tom Parker, who died of brain cancer in March 2022. At the time of his death, they had been together for 13 years.
They also have two children: Aurelia, three, and two-year-old Bodhi.
Since Tom’s death, Kelsey has been sharing her journey with grief with her followers on social media, as well as in her ITVBe series, Kelsey Parker: Life After Tom.
On Sunday (1 January), she shared her first message of 2023 with her fans, in which she admitted that she has mixed feelings about leaving 2022 behind.
“Hello 2023. I wonder what you’ll have in store for us,” she begins her post.
“To be honest I’m not really sure how I’m feeling about the new year. I want to be hopeful, to look forward to but it’s hard to move forward without looking back.
“I do know that whatever it brings, with Rae and Bo by my side the year will be full of smiles, fun and positivity. We’ll carry on as we were in 2022, living with our grief and growing around it.”
Kelsey concluded her message by wishing those reading love and happiness for the coming year.
In response, many fans have chimed in with support and gratitude for her emotional words.
One follower commented: “You are the bravest and most inspirational person, I can’t wait to see what 2023 has in store for you and the kids. Continue what you’re doing because you are doing an amazing job, loss is never easy but I know that Tom will be proud of you all.”
Another encouraging message reads: “Please don’t give up on life, you will find happiness again, I promise you that.”
As part of the post, Kelsey shared a picture of a graphic that depicts a person growing around grief, rather than grief shrinking over time.
“YES to that second picture!” replied one fan. “Someone told me that when I first lost my beloved and it really resonated.”
Kelsey Parker: Life After Tom is available to stream on ITVX.
