Danny Abdallah, whose three children and a niece were killed when a vehicle mounted the footpath in Sydney's north-west in 2020, has said the thing he misses most is the everyday disorder of family life — the noise, mess and chaos that marked his home before the crash.
The crash on February 1, 2020, in Oatlands claimed the lives of siblings Sienna, 8, Angelina, 12, and Antony, 13, and their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11. The children and several siblings and cousins were walking along Bettington Road when a ute mounted the kerb and struck them from behind. The driver, Samuel Davidson, was found to be three times over the legal alcohol limit and under the influence of drugs at the time of the collision. He was later sentenced to 20 years in prison with a non-parole period of 15 years after an appeal reduced an earlier sentence.
"After what had happened to us, the saddest day was when I walked into the house and it was perfect … there was no mess," Abdallah told The Sunday Telegraph while marking Father's Day. "I used to wish for this and when I got it, I wish I had it the other way. So I tell parents, don't be upset when the house is dysfunctional and unorganised – because it becomes a home."
Abdallah and his wife Leila have made public statements about forgiveness in the years since the collision and have channelled their loss into community work. They established the i4give foundation to honour the memory of their children and niece and to promote forgiveness across Australia. The foundation marks February 1 each year as an i4give day.
Speaking on KIIS FM's The Kyle & Jackie O show, Abdallah said forgiveness was a conscious decision rooted in his Christian faith and in the needs of his surviving family. "At the end of the day, I've still got three other kids. I need to be a father too and I need to be a husband to my wife, and it's already hard enough," he said. "Do I pour bitterness, anger and revenge, or love, compassion and forgiveness? Because whatever I give, it'll affect everyone in that circle."
The Abdallah and Sakr families unveiled a permanent memorial to the four children at the crash site outside Oatlands Golf Club in 2024. The ceremony included sandstone plinths bearing the children's faces and was attended by political leaders who have supported the family since the tragedy. Abdallah thanked his wife at the event for being his "pillar of strength."
Abdallah has described a continuing contact with Davidson, saying they now speak monthly and that he chose to meet the man who caused the crash to show he was not a monster and to understand the wider consequences for all involved. A meeting between Abdallah and Davidson was filmed by Channel Seven for its Spotlight program and broadcast in August.
The family has continued to expand; Abdallah said his wife recently gave birth to their eighth child. He framed the decision to forgive in part as a responsibility to his surviving children and spouse, noting research and commentary that the stresses following the death of a child put marriages at high risk.
Legal proceedings after the crash resulted in Davidson's imprisonment. His original sentence was reduced on appeal to 20 years, with a non-parole period of 15 years. The case drew national attention to issues of drink-driving and road safety in Australia and prompted public discussion about grief, forgiveness and restorative responses to traumatic loss.
Abdallah's comments about missing the