Mother recalls the night she lost her husband and son in a tragic accident

Saturday 5th December, 2015 was a typically busy day for Anna-Louise Bates, her husband Stuart and their two young children, Fraser and Elizabeth.

“I’d like to say it was an unusual day, but it was just totally typical of us as a family”, says Anna-Louise.

The family decided to spend the night at a nearby friend’s house, and left the Christmas party a little after midnight.

But as they crossed the main road on the outskirts of Llantrisant, south Wales, the unspeakable happened when both Stuart and Fraser were hit by a car.

43-year-old Stuart passed away shortly after the accident. Fraser, 7, died later at Bristol Children’s Hospital.

The driver of the car, 22-year-old Joshua Staples, has since been jailed for 16 months for causing death by careless driving. But despite the immense grief of losing both her husband and her son, Anna-Louise has never sought retribution for what happened.

When Stuart and Fraser were killed, Anna-Louise made the decision to donate their organs. The family had discussed organ donation not long before the accident, and Anna-Louise knew what her husband’s wishes were.

Fraser’s organs went on to save four lives, and Anna-Louise is now trying to spread the word about organ donation through a new charity called Believe.

• Watch Anna-Louise Bates’ full interview with Andrea Byrne on Wales This Week: A Reason to Believe, by clicking here.