This week, June 25, marks 20 years since Belinda Williams - a beautiful and doting 36-year-old mother - was killed, believed to be in her Buninyong home, while her six-year-old daughter, Mietta, slept.

Nobody has ever been charged with the crime and the multitude of questions and lack of answers has haunted her friends and family in the two decades since.

Police have questioned dozens of people as the years have ticked by, to no avail. A $1 million reward leading to a break in the case remains in place.

Ms Williams' mother, Shirley Macey, clearly remembers the day she found out her daughter was missing.

It was a beautiful, frosty morning and she was sitting at the window, pondering life as she looked out at the sun-drenched landscape.

She recalls thinking that everything was finally going well for her family and that all of her children had found happiness. And then she got the call.

The family immediately started searching for Ms Williams. Her brother, Nat Watchorn, said as soon as the family learned she was missing, they knew something terrible had happened - she would never have disappeared and left her daughter to fend for herself.

Read more: Who killed Belinda Williams? 20 years on and still no answers

Just shy of two weeks of endless searching with police and sleepless nights later, the nightmare moment her family had been dreading became a reality: Ms Williams' body had been located in scrub, only seven-kilometres from her home.

Mr Watchorn remembers the moment he found out his sister's body had been found and the feeling of anguish he felt like it was only yesterday.

It was his birthday and he had taken a break from searching for his sister for a dinner at his in-laws. He was holding the knife in his hand, just about to slice his birthday cake, when the phone rang.

He no longer opens birthday cards or celebrates the day - it is too horrific a reminder of what happened to his sister.

During the time Ms Williams was missing to when she was found, Mr Watchorn had unintentionally internalised his panic and despair.

He, along with his siblings, had been pragmatic throughout the ordeal - caught up in searching for their sister through the day and night and then organising the funeral arrangements after she was found - but one day, he was driving home from work when it hit him - and he completely broke down.

Afterwards, with the many questions swimming in his head around who could have killed his sister and how somebody could take a mother from a young child, he began to frequently dream of his older sister. They were not nightmares, but dreams.

"I would look forward to going to sleep during that period because then I could hear, see and touch her - it was so real. It stopped as time went on but recently, I dreamt of her again," Mr Watchorn said.

The lack of answers for such an extensive period of time has taken a toll on the whole family.

"Belinda was the victim," Mr Watchorn said. "But there were a lot of indirect victims too. So many people have been affected by this."

The family feels no closer to receiving answers, rather, they feel like they are further away, so they are again appealing to the community - to any witnesses, anybody with information pertaining to the case or to the murderer themselves, if they have a conscience - to contact police.

"If you know something, come forward. Don't think that the information is already known by police," Mr Watchorn said.

Ms Macey, now in her 80s, lies in bed each night, trying to solve the mystery of who killed her daughter.

Ms Williams was the third of six children. The eldest was Albert, who passed away as an infant, followed by Bruce, Belinda, Nerrida, Nat and Sean.

Sean Macey was still young at the time his sister was killed. Despite his age, he said he has not been the same since. Once outgoing, he is now quiet . His sister, Nerrida, still misses her sister everyday.

Bruce Williams was close with his sister. His daughter, Edwina, urged people to speak about the case with their family and friends as it may trigger a long forgotten memory which could assist police with cracking the case.

See some of The Courier's coverage at the time:

Ms Williams' family recalls her as being bubbly and exceptionally creative. She was an excellent seamstress, even working as an apprentice milliner in Melbourne for a time. She also had a discerning eye for style and adored all things fashion.

Her other great passion was cooking. She completed a cooking course at the Ballarat School of Mines and went on to use her talents when she started a catering business with some friends, before working at a restaurant for several years.

Her family distinctly remembers, and misses, the taste of her buttery hot cross buns at Easter and her fruity mince tarts and heart-shaped biscuits at Christmas, when she also created the bonbons for the table.

But her true calling, her family believes, was being a mother, which is when she truly blossomed.

Ms Williams' daughter Mietta Coventry has grown up to be hauntingly like her mother in both mannerisms and ambition.

Her father, David Coventry, has always said that she is exactly how her mother made her by the age of six. And she is still the same.

The family would like to thank the Ballarat community, who set up a fund for Mietta after her mother was killed. The money raised went towards her education and allowed her to complete a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Melbourne and then, following in her mother's footsteps, a cookery course at William Angliss Institute.

She is currently working at a prestigious restaurant in London.

If you know something about the murder of Belinda Williams contact Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000.

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