Photography: Phillip Castleton.
As the rain stopped in Sydney, a beautiful rainbow broke through the gum trees as we gathered for our photoshoot, causing the Woman’s Day team to look skyward. Thought to be a symbol of hope, guidance and connection, a rainbow seemed fitting as we reunited the family of Matilda, the youngest of the 15 victims who were killed during the Bondi terror attack, with Natasha, the courageous young woman who saved Matilda’s little sister Summer.
“I cried and there were lots of hugs,” Matilda and Summer’s mum Valentyna says of seeing her hero at a recent vigil for victims at Bondi Beach. Her husband Michael was the one who recognised Tash and she ran into her arms. “It was a big surprise for me, but it was a happy surprise. I couldn’t believe she was there!”
Little Summer also immediately recognised her secret saviour.
A teary Valentyna tells, “She ran up to her, hugged her and said, ‘Thank you for saving my life.’”
Ukrainian-born Valentyna had been searching for the unsung hero who saved Summer’s life on the night of 14 December, when her other daughter Matilda, 10, was tragically and fatally shot. After reading a story in Woman’s Day, Tash’s stepfather Andrew realised his stepdaughter was the “hero woman”, and Tash and her mum Ally headed to Bondi to surprise the family.
Realising what happened
“I had no idea that it was Summer I’d saved until my stepdad showed me the article and then it clicked,” says Tash, 20, who was working at her mum’s petting zoo at the Chanukah by the Sea event
that was targeted by terrorists.
When the first shots were fired, Tash grabbed six-year-old Summer and hid in her family’s van, sitting the little girl on her lap and protecting her as the gunmen unleashed their bullets.
Staying calm under fire
Tash recalls, “I didn’t even know Summer’s name – I just told her, ‘Crouch down and hold my hands’. I asked her to look at me the whole time and said, ‘Don’t look anywhere else and just pretend it’s fireworks.’”
A photo of Matilda petting Rusty the goat has been shared since her death.
Tash’s mum Ally remembers, “She just had a captivating smile and I felt drawn to her. I have a niece called Matilda, so I asked her if she ever gets called Tilly and she said no. Before the shooting took place, it was the happiest event.”
A tragic separation
Tragically, it was one of the last conversations Matilda ever had. While Tash was holding tightly onto Summer, Matilda became separated from her family and was shot.
Frantically searching for her little girls, Valentyna remembers her husband finding Matilda and yelling, “Come here! She is still alive.”
She adds, “When I saw Matilda, she recognised me.”
Coping with heartbreak
Valentyna was in the hospital with Matilda while she was operated on, but doctors tragically couldn’t save her beautiful little girl. The weeks since her loss have been filled with unimaginable pain, but reconnecting with Tash has brought light.
When asked if she sees herself as a hero, Tash says modestly, “She was there, she was a kid and I just did what anyone would do. I saw a child that needed saving and I saved her.”
A mother’s gratitude
For Valentyna, of course, that means everything.
She tells Tash, “You are a hero for Australia and for me. Personally, you are the best hero in the world. We have quite a few heroes at the moment, but you are the best.”
Turning to us, she continues, “What Tash did was just amazing because she not only shielded Summer to keep her physically safe, but she was also thinking about her mind and mental state at that point. That is just amazing. A million times thank you.”
Coping with the aftermath
The weeks since the attack have been “up and down” for Tash, who admits hearing fireworks on New Year’s Eve “was really tough”.
Throughout our photoshoot, Summer hugs a framed picture of her sister. Her mum shares, “She’s missing Matilda, but seeing Tash has been really good for her. It has made her so happy.
A bond that can’t be broken
“She and Matilda were very, very close. They shared a bedroom and for a long time, they slept together in one king-sized bed, so it’s very hard for her.”
It’s difficult for Valentyna too.
“When it gets too hard, I hug, kiss and comfort her photograph as if it was her,” she says tearfully.
“I ask her for forgiveness because we couldn’t save her. I say that we will always love her. I asked Michael to laminate that photo because my tears will ruin it.”
Honouring Summer’s birthday
Tash will join the family to celebrate Summer’s seventh birthday next month. Valentyna plans to include the petting zoo—and especially Rusty the goat, who was pictured with Matilda—at the celebration.
Tash will happily be the guest of honour, saying that Summer’s “like a little sister to me”, and she’s thrilled with the bee necklace – Matilda’s middle name was Bee – that Valentyna gives her. Bonded together by the events of that tragic December day, Valentyna says, “We will stay in touch forever. We’re family now.”
