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| 22 November 2002 |
| 22 November 2002 Girlfriend to Farewell Billy, Then Heal in Bali By Greg Stolz SKY Futcher will bury her boyfriend Billy Hardy next week. Then she will fly to Bali to touch the ground on which he walked. "It's going to help me in the long healing process ahead," Ms Futcher said. "At the moment, I just feel extremely lost, alone and empty. I'll feel a lot closer to Billy in Bali." Billy Hardy, 20, was with eight Southport Sharks AFL team-mates on an end-of-season trip to Bali when the terrorist bombs exploded. He was the only Sharks player not to make it home. The harrowing wait for news of his fate finally ended for his family and friends this week when Billy's body was formally identified and flown back to Australia. His older sister, Big Brother star Jessica Hardy � who with her father Bill Sr attended a Hindu memorial service in Bali last week � said yesterday that the family was too upset to speak with the media. Ms Futcher, speaking outside the Hardys' Tweed Heads home yesterday, said the family was comforting each other ahead of Billy's funeral next Wednesday. "They're being very, very strong and I'm so proud of them," she said. She said the fact that Billy's body had been identified and flown home had helped her and Billy's family and friends find some closure. "It's really a big help to know that he was found and that he's home. One way or the other, I wanted him home and it's a relief. "It (being Billy's girlfriend) was the best eight months of my life. I'm extremely lucky to have had him." Ms Futcher said she and her mother Judy would fly to Bali after Billy's funeral to help her grieve. "I just want to see where he was, to touch the ground he stepped on," she said. "I'm really looking forward to that because I'll know he'll be with me." Sharks captain-coach Scott Lawton said Billy's No. 9 jersey had been retired in honour of the talented and popular rover. Sharks players, including team-mates who survived the Bali bomb blasts, are expected to wear their football uniforms in tribute. Copies of a videotape recorded on the plane flight to Bali � the last footage of Billy alive � will be distributed to his team-mates. A fund-raiser for the Hardys and other victims of the Bali tragedy will be held at the Southport Sharks club tonight. Article from The Courier Mail |