"Is it okay if I cry?"

Victim Support were there for Billy Davis when his wife unexpectedly passed away and now he’s determined to be there for others as a volunteer Victim Support Worker.

In September 2020, Billy Davis came home from work to the shock and disbelief of finding his wife had died of a heart attack."Is it okay if I cry?"

He remembers police mentioning Victim Support, but at the time he was simply unable to take anything in. A few days later though, he made the call, and not long after Support Worker Deborah Du Toit was on his doorstep.

“She was amazing,” says Billy. “There was obviously a lot of darkness and hurt, pain and confusion, but Deborah came in with her big smile and said, ‘I’m with you. Let’s just do this one step at a time’.”

"When I see the people that we help starting to improve, it is hugely rewarding."

Though he did have a lot of support from people around him, Billy felt he could open up a lot more to Deborah.

“I asked her ‘is it OK if I cry’”? He says of his first meeting with Deborah.

“She gave me licence to cry whereas family, they look at you as being the stalwart, the backbone. So, I was able to let out those tears before the family arrived.”

Some months later, after coming across an ad, Billy found himself at a Victim Support volunteering information evening. Before he knew it, Billy was training to be a Support Worker.

Since going through the training and internship, Billy has supported around 150 local people in his community in getting through some very tough times. For Billy, a large part of what he enjoys at Victim Support is the teamwork and opportunity to help someone in a way that can be life-changing.

"I understand what it’s like to be in that dark place, so when I see the smiles start to come, it’s a really good feeling."