This Monday would have been Mackenzie Anderson's 22nd birthday.
But instead of preparing for a party, her mum Tabitha Acret is preparing to march this Saturday in Mackenzie's honour after her alleged murder on March 25. Mackenzie's former partner remains before the courts, charged with the stabbing death of the bubbly young mum at her Mayfield home.
Tabitha was in a hotel room with her nine-year-old son that night when she received the call that would break her heart forever.
"I got the call at two o'clock in the morning," she said. "Because I was told that she had died I was wondering if [her son] was alive as well.
"So then it was, 'how was I going to tell my son that his sister had died?'"
While dealing with the deepest tragedy of her own, Tabitha said she felt compelled to speak out not just for her daughter but for other women too.
"I think it's important to not let the conversation end," she said. "Mackenzie got a lot of media attention in that first week. But we can't just be outraged for a week. We have to keep being outraged.
"Many women have died since her and before her that haven't unfortunately, received a lot of publicity. And I think some of the reason my daughter got a lot was because she was very attractive.
"But sometimes we silently ignore it. Especially if they're women of colour.
"[The march] hopefully shows the government that we're not going to slide into the background and die silently anymore."
That fight for change is what drives Tabitha through the darkness, but what gives her the fuel to get through the day to day is family, especially Mackenzie's two-year-old son - an energetic and cheeky boy who is rarely seen without a smile.
"You put your grief into action so it doesn't just swallow you," she said. "And because you've got other people that you have to turn up for every day.
"It's a horrible reason that we've got him.
"But also, in those moments of grief, where you think 'I don't think I can get up and get dressed today' well, you have no choice.
"You have to get up and feed a toddler and take the toddler to the park and play with the toddler.
"There's some things where I feel really sorry for him, like every Mother's Day at primary school. That's always going to be a reminder.
"Obviously long term our worries are how much this has projected on him, but he has been pretty good.
"Mackenzie's really good friends, they come over at least once a week and check on him too."
Tabitha has also received beautiful messages from far and wide about her daughter.
"Sometimes I don't really have it in me to say much more than thank you," she said. "But it really does mean a lot when people reach out and say, 'I didn't know her, but I'm so sorry for you'.
"And 'I'm thinking about her and it really upset me and I was really moved by this story'."
She hopes for a strong turnout at the march on Saturday, which is being organised by local advocacy organisation What Were You Wearing? Attendees are asked to meet at Newcastle Museum at 1.30pm for a 2pm start. The march will end at Nobbys Beach, where there will be guest speakers, food, resources and a donation drive.
