Mount Gambier toddler Mia Powell, 3, dies on a Sunday drive with her family after a battle with Tay-Sachs
A brave toddler who captured South Aussie hearts while battling a cruel, incurable disease has died peacefully during a Sunday drive with her family.
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A brave Mount Gambier toddler who captured South Australian hearts while battling the cruel, incurable disease Tay-Sachs has died peacefully during a Sunday drive with her family.
Mia Powell’s mum, Sarah, shared the heartbreaking news in an emotional post that has left the local community in mourning.
“It is with a very heavy heart that we announce that this afternoon, Mia took her last breath and went for her forever sleep,” she wrote.
“We were out for a lovely Sunday drive and she slipped away peacefully. She was surrounded by Jake, myself, Hunter and Aston. Ironically, we were near the Princess Margaret Rose Caves which my maternal ancestors discovered many years ago.”
The family had no idea those quiet moments together would be their last with Mia.
Sarah also posted their final photo together taken “before she grew her angel wings” earlier that same day — a tear running down her cheek as she kissed her daughter tenderly on the forehead.
“Mia Rose, our beautiful Princess, you are at rest now and free from the cruel constraints of Tay Sachs disease,” Ms Powell said.
“You have touched so many hearts and are adored by everyone who has met you. You leave a huge hole.
“One day we will reunite. Until then we will look for you in every sunrise and sunset, feel you in the breeze and the sunshine on our faces, and think of you always.”
Mia was just three years old.
The Advertiser first shared her story in 2023, after Sarah and her husband Jake revealed their 16-month-old daughter had been diagnosed with Tay-Sachs — a rare and fatal genetic disorder that causes a build-up of toxic fatty substances in the brain and spinal cord, slowly shutting down the nervous system.
“There was this big sense of ‘it’ll be something that we can fix’,” Sarah said at the time.
But there was no fix — only time, love, and the small, sacred moments that became everything.
“Life has become about noticing the small things, making the most of the small things and learning to love and appreciate Mia in the here and now,” she said.
The diagnosis shook the Mount Gambier community, who rallied around the family in extraordinary fashion.
A small raffle turned into a major charity auction, with more than 400 people showing up to support them at the Mount Gambier Golf Club, where Jake worked.
Now, that same community is grieving the loss of the little girl who brought so many together.
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Originally published as Mount Gambier toddler Mia Powell, 3, dies on a Sunday drive with her family after a battle with Tay-Sachs
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