Niamh Maye has been missing for 18 years, and not a day goes by that her family doesn't wish she was still by their side.
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The then-18-year-old was last seen alive in 2002. Niamh had spent the summer fruit picking in Batlow and was set to meet her sister Fionnuala Hagerty in Sydney, but never made the journey.
"We knew almost immediately it wasn't going to be good news," Ms Hagerty said.
"She was meant to meet me in Sydney and we were going to go home to Armidale together to see the family for Easter.
"Everyone that had been with her leading up to that knew her plans, she was really excited to see us and also to start uni the next year."
Police were told that the Armidale teen left a campground at Jingellic on Saturday, March 30, and prior to her disappearance, had been dropped off at Gocup Road, Tumut, by an associate.
A coronial inquest in March 2012 determined Niamh had died at or near Tumut, by a person or persons unknown to her, on March 30 or 31, 2002.
"Niamh has now been gone longer than she was in our life, 18 years," Ms Hagerty said.
Despite extensive investigations, no trace of the teenager has ever been found and no one has been charged in connection with her disappearance.
Ms Hagerty said the news of her sister's death was hard to hear.
"It took us a long time to come to terms with the fact she wasn't coming back," she said.
"For us, as a family, we have learned to live with the fact she's not here, but it's a different kind of grief involved because there are so many unanswered questions."
Niamh's father Brian Maye remembered his daughter as a happy and creative young woman with a great sense of humour.
"Niamh is always with us in spirit and we will always honour the 18 years she filled us with her brightness," he said.
"Not a day goes by we don't think of Niamh and the life she would have lived. We miss our beautiful, loving, cheeky, fun daughter, sister and aunt."
Niamh Maye's mother Anne Maye said her daughter was a devoted and much-loved sister and aunt to her six siblings and one niece.
"As a family, we have never given up hope that we might be able to find Niamh and give her a proper resting place," she said.
"Niamh's memory lives on with us - including 11 new nieces and nephews, two of whom carry her name as their middle name, in honour of the aunt they never had the opportunity to meet.
"After 18 years of unanswered questions, we're asking anyone in the community who may have information to please come forward."
At the time of her disappearance, Niamh was described as being of Caucasian appearance, about 170cm tall, with a slim build, shoulder-length dark blonde hair and blue/grey eyes.
She was last seen carrying a backpack, tent, sleeping bag and metre-long stick.
Police stated that investigations into her disappearance are continuing by detectives from Riverina Police District, together with the State Crime Command's Unsolved Homicide Unit and Missing Persons Registry, under Strike Force Yola.
It is currently being reviewed under the new unsolved homicide framework, according to a police statement.
The Maye family will forever hold Niamh in their hearts, and hope one day to get the answers they have been waiting a lifetime for.
"Even to this day, there will always be unanswered questions, but she is still very much a part of our family," Ms Hagerty said.
"We celebrate her often, we think about her everyday, we share inside jokes and reminisce about little stories."
In light of this year's Missing Persons Week, running from August 2 to August 8, Ms Hagerty thanked police for their ongoing efforts in Niamh's case.
"We are grateful for all the support and assistance the locals and police in the area have given us over the years," she said.
"We would love to be able to bring Niamh home."
Anyone with information about Niamh Maye's disappearance is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.