Sydney family shares heartbreak after mum, sister die in separate overseas holiday road tragedies

Twelve-and-a-half years after her older sister Nicole was killed in a motorcycle crash in Thailand, Kate Gladdin’s mum Julie Fitzsimons was taken in very similar circumstances.

Kate Gladdin with her brother Matt Fitzsimons (left) and dad Vince Fitzsimons. Kate lost her sister Nicole in a road accident in 2012, and recently lost her mum Julie, who was killed by a careless driver while crossing the road in the United States. Picture: Max Mason-Hubers

When Kate Gladdin heard the sirens and spotted emergency services swarming the scene of a horror crash, she immediately began shaking and crying, with one thought consuming her mind: “This can’t be happening again”.

Twelve-and-a-half years after her older sister Nicole was killed in a motorcycle crash in Thailand, Kate’s mum Julie Fitzsimons was taken in very similar circumstances.

She was on holiday in a foreign country, just like her daughter, and had been having the time of her life, just like her daughter.

May 28 started like “any other day” according to Kate but, by 1pm, her family’s lives had been ripped apart for the second time.

Julie and her husband Vince had travelled to their daughter Kate’s new home of Sheridan, Wyoming, for a two week-long family catch-up when an allegedly reckless driver mowed her down as she crossed at the lights of a crosswalk with the walk signal in her favour.

Kate Gladdin, Julie Fitzsimons and Nicole Fitzsimons. Picture: Supplied

“I walked out in the morning and mum was sweeping my garage, that’s just the kind of person mum was,” Kate told the Telegraph.

“She was always wanting to help out, she was a sweetheart.”

Kate had a meeting in town at 12pm and Julie decided to go with her, planning to walk around Sheridan and grab some lunch while she waited for Kate.

Julie Fitzsimons, Kate Gladdin and Vince Fitzsimons in Sheridan, Wyoming. Picture: Supplied

They planned to meet back up the car at 1pm – but when Kate arrived at the car at 1.07pm, her mum wasn’t there, which was very unlike the always-prompt Julie.

“It was weird, she was always punctual. So I called, and she didn’t pick up. And then I called again, and again,” she said.

“I was trying to rationalise it in my head, I thought maybe she’d left her phone at home. That’s when I started to get hot … I was just thinking ‘where is she? Where is mum?’.”

She rounded the nearest corner in search of Julie, and saw the street had been shut down. There were police everywhere and the sirens and lights brought memories of her older sister Nicole flooding back.

Kate and her father Vince at a memorial for Julie Fitzsimons in the days following her death. Picture: Cooper Creative Co.

Nicole was just 24 when she was killed in a motorcycle crash in Thailand. She suffered severe head injuries and was unable to be revived.

“We got the attention of the Sheridan police and he said ‘you need to get to the hospital. She’s unresponsive’.

“I just dropped to my knees, it could not be happening again.

“My sister can’t happen again. I just didn’t want it to be true.”

Calls were made to her dad Vince and husband Nate as they rushed to Sheridan’s local hospital, where they were quickly swept into a consult room.

Kate and Vince were bombarded with information, phrases like “we tried everything”, “we did CPR” were followed by the horrific news: “her head injuries were too bad”.

“When the doctor said ‘head injuries’, I just was like, not again,” Kate said through tears.

“No. I’ve lost a sister to a crash overseas and head injuries like this.

“This doesn’t happen. Lightning doesn’t strike twice.”

Vince Fitzsimon and Kate Gladdin at the memorialin Sheridan, Wyoming. Picture: Cooper Creative Co.

After Nicole’s death in 2012, Julie and Kate became devoted travel safety advocates, creating the Nicole Fitzsimons Foundation. The mother-daughter duo travelled to schools across the country to teach young people about the dangers of riding motorbikes in foreign countries and the importance of purchasing travel insurance.

The foundation also gave grants to talented performers and sports stars who needed that bit of extra help in fulfilling their dreams – which became Julie’s passion.

As Kate, her father, and brother Matt process the tragic events of the last three weeks, one decision about the future of the foundation came naturally – with the family choosing to rename it the Nicole and Julie Fitzsimons Foundation.

“The joy it brought mum was beautiful, she made these really special relationships with people,” Kate said.

“She often put herself last, and being her daughter meant to always be loved wholeheartedly. We want to continue that for her.”

Julie Fitzsimons. Picture: Supplied

Julie Fitzsimons and Kate Gladdin. Picture: Supplied

Just this week, Kate, who is currently back in Australia at her parents’ Sandringham home, learnt the driver involved in the crash that killed her mum had been charged with homicide by vehicle and failure to obey traffic devices.

“Although it doesn’t bring mum back, it is reassuring to know the police are doing everything they can to seek justice for her,” she said.

“Actions have consequences and we hope the legal system takes care of ensuring the driver receives an adequate punishment for what he’s done to mum and our family.”

A spitting image of her mum and sister, Kate said it was her job to keep their infectious smiles living on.

“Every day I get on this earth is now another day my mum and sister don’t get, so it’s up to me to make the most of it.

“I’m going to take the best parts of them to live on with me and through me. And that’s the only way I can fathom a world without my sister and my mum in it.”

While Sheridan now holds some of Kate’s most painful memories, it also holds those most dear to her. It’s where she spent her mum’s final days sitting in the garden, chatting, catching up. And it’s where she will soon return home to plant a garden in her mum’s honour.

“She was jokingly giving me a hard time about the garden, so it’ll be one of the first things I do,” she said.

“I’m going to create that garden she wanted me to have.”

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Originally published as Sydney family shares heartbreak after mum, sister die in separate overseas holiday road tragedies