Devastated parents of Riley Ma share heartbreak after Wakerley family daycare death

The heartbroken parents of a baby boy who died suddenly at a Brisbane family daycare centre said their lives have been “turned upside down”.

One-year-old Riley Ma was found unresponsive at a family daycare in Wakerley on September 2.

Paramedics were immediately called but Riley was unable to be saved. He was declared dead in what was believed to be a medical episode, although investigations into the cause and circumstances of the death are ongoing.

“Today, he would have been 13 months old,” Riley’s mother Ying Song told 7NEWS.com.au this week.

“Riley was healthy, adorable, intelligent, and full of smiles.

“Our entire family is devastated.”

Song said for the first few days after Riley’s death, she and her husband Ying Ma could hardly eat, drink, bathe, or sleep.

She said she had struggled breaking the news of Riley’s death to her own mother, who is battling late-stage cancer.

“We still rely on medication to help us sleep now,” she said.

“Our lives have been turned upside down and, after the funeral, we will need the help of a psychologist.”

Song spoke of how proud she and her husband were of their baby boy, who was starting to walk while holding onto the coffee table and could stand independently for several seconds.

“He was very close to walking on his own,” she said.

“I’d heard that all little boys love to dig in the sand at the beach, so we bought him a whole set of sand toys early on thinking that, once he could walk, we might take him to the beach.

“Sadly, that opportunity will never come.”

Song said the couple had prepared for his birth since they married in 2015.

Wanting to provide a stable environment for any future children, they decided to wait until they obtained permanent residency in Australia before they had a baby.

“We didn’t want our child to be born while we were still unsettled, because we wanted to raise our child in the best possible environment,” Song said.

“It wasn’t until the second half of 2022 that we felt ready to welcome Riley.”

Riley had meant everything to them and their extended family, Song said.

“He was born with love and hope and was growing up in a loving environment,” she said.

“When he was about 11 months old, he started to smile at strangers and wanted to interact with them and we believed he would grow to have a bright and cheerful personality.”

Riley’s father fondly remembered one of Riley’s favourite games was pointing at objects in the house as his mother told him what they were: “This is the curtain, this is the airconditioner, this is the fan, and this is the light.”

He also remembers Riley’s love of hide-and-seek with his mother, and how he would be “delighted every time he found her”.

“These are memories we want to keep in our hearts forever,” Ma said.

A GoFundMe has been created to help support Riley’s family as they navigate a future without their son.

Friends and neighbours have also surrounded the bereaved parents with support, checking in on them daily, bringing food and even staying over during difficult nights when Riley’s grandparents were delayed flying to Australia amid visa issues.

“Although Riley was in this world for only one year and 22 days, he should have had a brilliantly bright life ahead of him,” Song said.

“But we believe that during the one year and 21 days before his passing, he was happy and joyful — he loved to smile.

“We will always remember his smiling face, and I hope everyone will remember Riley’s pure, innocent smile.

“We are deeply grateful for all the help we’ve received.”