AMPUTEE SUPPORT ASSOCIATION
SUNSHINE COAST INC.
P.O. Box 1374, BUDERIM QLD 4556
NEWSLETTER
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GENERAL MEETING
Meetings are held the 3rd TUESDAY of each month at 10 A.M. at
EDUCATION CENTRE, HIBISCUS RETIREMENT RESORT Lakehead Drive, Chancellor Park
For information please contact: President: 5493 4346
(No Meeting in December or January) |
March 2015 to May 2015 |
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
President: Cliff Hargreaves 5493 4346
Vice-President: Brian Poulter 0411 499 488
Secretary: Debbie Murr 5478 9286
Treasurer: Bob McClintock 5443 4561
Committee Members: Tony Hyett 5476 8353
Joy Laxton 5442 1860
Peter Williams 0421 443813
Welfare/Liaison Cliff Hargreaves 5493 4346
Membership Officer Tony Hyett 5476 8353
Newsletter Editor Karen Nicholson nicholsons.finance@gmail.com
Contact debbie@amputeesupport.net.au
Website www.amputeesupport.net.au
Patrons:
Fiona Simpson MP 5443 7995
Member for Maroochydore
Jarrod Bleijie MP 5478 1189
Member for Kawana
Clinics by Appointments Only
Nambour Clinic – 3rd Thursday of each Month
For Appointment Telephone: (07) 3636 7286
Currimundi Clinic, Coora Street, Currimundi – 1st and 3rd Thursday of each Month
For an Appointment telephone: 3266 1255
Disclaimer: The material contained in this publication is in the nature of general comment only and never purports, nor is intended to be advice on any particular matter.
Readers should not act or rely upon any matter or information contained or implied by this publication without taking appropriate professional advice which relates specifically to their particular circumstances. The Association expressly disclaims all and any liability to any person whether an Association member or note, who acts or fails to act as a consequence of reliance upon the whole or part of the publication.
President’s Report
Although we haven’t had a meeting since November 2014 much has happened including a change of government. We had our Christmas Lunch on 14th December with 73 adults and 7 children in attendance. Once again it was a great day and the Mooloolaba Bowls Club did a wonderful job with the meal and the venue. We presented Maureen and Chris Price with a plaque in appreciation of the support they have given the Association over the years. Although Maureen resigned as secretary in August 2014 she wanted to continue with the newsletter. However due to failing health she has found it impossible to continue. This left us in a quandary. However Karen Nicholson from Enterprise Street Self Storage, the organisation that donated the shed for our equipment, has offered to help temporarily.
We had a sausage sizzle at Bunnings Caloundra on 11th January to raise funds. Once again the Lions Club of Lake Currimundi and Kawana ran the show helped out by some of our members. The Lions are a wonderful group and I sincerely thank them for their help with the barbeques in which we have been involved.
I was nominated for a Senior Citizen of the Year Award and attended the ceremony on 21st January. Although I was unsuccessful it was a wonderful ceremony and a credit to the organisers. Rosanna Natoli was an excellent M.C.
Our annual Easter Raffle will be held in March and I hope our members will support it when the tickets are sent to them. We also need volunteers to help sell raffle tickets at Kawana Shopping World. We will be there for a total of six days (see dates in “events” section of newsletter). If you are able to help out, either for a full day or for just a few hours, please phone me. We would really appreciate some help with this.
Also there is an Amputee Forum to be held in Brisbane on 14th march. It will be well worth attending if you can.
Sadly on the 6th January we attended the funeral at Nambour of Edna Astle, one of our elderly long time members.
In closing I wish you all the best for the months ahead and remember, I am only a phone call away if you need assistance.
Cliff Hargreaves
Welfare
I have seen a woman and three men amputees in the Rehab Unit in Caloundra in the last three months. Two of the men have gone home but the remaining one is waiting for somewhere to live. The woman will probably be there for a while yet. I also visited a woman with a recent amputation in the Sunshine Coast Private Hospital. Whilst there I met another woman amputee who we had helped several months ago. She was in Rehab learning to use her prosthesis. I was asked to go and visit a man with a recent amputation in Selangor Hospital in Nambour. He is a 59 year old with a BRK amputation.
I phoned Paula Gowland, the woman who fell off the bed and broke her leg and ultimately had it amputated below the knee. There was an article about her in our last newsletter. She had the osseo-integration system done below the knee in December but has had to return to Sydney for further treatment.
We have had the usual movement of equipment being lent and returned. We had a request for two scooters which we were able to lend to our members. As well we had a special folding stool organised to allow one of our members to get into his vehicle.
There have been four clinics for ALA at Currimundi with 23 appointments.
Cliff Hargreaves
Secretary’s Report
Happy New Year to you all. I hope you all had a Happy, healthy and safe Christmas with your loved ones.
Our Christmas lunch at the Mooloolaba Bowls Club was very well organised, a big thanks to Julia.
The function room was set up beautifully when we arrived, and the meal was delicious. Thank you to the catering staff.
We had a sausage sizzle and raffle at Bunnings Caloundra to raise funds. Many thanks to the Lions club, who are so organised and know exactly what they are doing.
Thank you to our helpers who set up in the morning and came back in the afternoon, and to our members who were selling the sausages and drinks. We could not have managed without you.
I would also like to thank Joy and Stan for helping me sell the raffle tickets.
I nominated Cliff for a Sunshine Coast Australia Day Senior Citizens Award. This event was held at Life Pointe Baptist Church, Wises Road, Maroochydore. This event was very well organised and Rosanna Natoli did an excellent job as speaker. Over all the categories there were 85 nominations. That is a lot of people who contribute their time to the community. Although Cliff didn’t win, every nominee is a winner.
I’m looking forward to seeing you all at our meetings and functions.
Regards Debbie
Edna May Astle
23-10-1923 to 27-12-2014
Age 91 years old.
Edna was born at Miranda Sydney and was the youngest siblings of five sisters and one brother, whom have predeceased her. She did most of her schooling at Sutherland and attended at Hurstville Domestic Science School.
After leaving school Edna worked at the Sutherland shire council for a short time. Edna worked in the milk bar owned by her Mum & Dad and this is where she met her love of her life Sam, she fell in love with this good looking man in Royal Australian air Force uniform, and he fell over a stool looking back at her. Edna & Sam married in 1942. Edna’s parents closed the milk bar & cake shop for an hour whilst they got married.
Edna & Sam were blessed with three sons & one Daughter (Liz). Over the years through Sam’s work they moved to Inverell, Tarragindi (Qld) Melbourne, and returned to Queensland in 1991 where they lived at Loganholme before moving to the Sunshine Coast in the year 2000.
In 2004 Sam became an amputee and this is where Sam & Edna joined the Amputee association for support friendship & love in which they received. In 2008 Sam passed away and Edna remained a member until May 2012 when she decided to move to Regis Lakeside Age Care Facility, for further assistance, friendship and security.
Edna spent 2 & 1/2 years at Regis until she had decided she really did want to be with her beloved Sam and so she decided she had, had enough and with the blessing of her family, she peacefully passed away on the 27th December, 2014.
Farewell and thank you Maureen
Maureen had been secretary of the Association for 10 years until she resigned at our AGM in August 2014 due to failing health. Her position involved the production of the paperwork for various meetings. She printed the 4-5 thousand tickets for our raffles. We used to stamp each ticket twice by hand with the number. Maureen found a system on the computer which printed and numbered them at the same time. They still had to be cut and assembled by volunteers. She devoted a lot of time to improving the newsletter. In the December 2008 issue she introduced colour which was a vast improvement over the old black and white, especially with photos. She also produced our brochures. Chris has assisted with the printing. He is always at our meetings selling tickets for the fruit trays. At our raffles at Kawana Shopping World he removed all the staples from the ticket butts and then screwed up the butts so that they could be placed in the barrel to be drawn. They have both given incredible service to the association and we felt that the plaque was our way of showing our appreciation for their efforts.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Amputee Forum Saturday 14th March Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, South Brisbane
Tuesday 17th March General Meeting 10am Hibiscus Retirement Resort, Education Centre Lakehead Drive, Sippy Downs Morning tea and chat after meeting
Easter raffle Thursday 19th, Friday 20th and Saturday 21st March at Kawana Shoppingworld
Cocos luncheon Tuesday 24th March 12 noon Cocos beach café, Westaway Parade, Currimundi Free for members and their drivers
Easter raffle Tuesday 31st March, Wednesday 1st April and Thursday 2nd April at Kawana Shoppingworld
Tuesday 21st April General meeting 10am Hibiscus Retirement Resort, Education Centre Lakehead Drive, Sippy Downs Morning tea and chat after meeting
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” As you get older, your secrets are safe with your friends because they can’t remember them either.”
” You can’t stay young forever, but you can be immature for the rest of your life.”
” There are few things more satisfying than seeing your children have teenagers of their own”
“Would you like to speak to the man in charge of the woman who knows what’s happening?”
“Be yourself. Nobody is better qualified.”
Birthdays March Archer Belbin, Colin Curtis, Marcia Dorricott, John Gowland, Tony Hyett, Coralie Hyett, David Keir, Fay Nash, Eric Svendsen, Stanley Thelander
Birthdays April Robyn Boxsell, Maxine Curtis, Brian Fawcett, Jenny Hooper, Carol Saroglia, Russell Sommer, Carol Todd, Gavin Wallace
Birthdays May Jodi Belbin, Corinne Doran, Stacey Enchelmaier, Henry Hansen, Gordon Jones, Allan McLean, Julie Smith, John Waters
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| In June 2012 Matthew Ames’ body went into toxic shock and his wife Diane had to make the decision to amputate all his limbs to save his life. Some of you may have seen his story on Channel 7’s Sunday Night program last year.
Recently he was holidaying at Wurtulla and Cliff and his daughter Gail had the privilege of meeting Matthew, his wife Di and their four children. Cliff asked Matthew if he could put a few words on paper about his holiday on the Sunshine Coast. And here it is:
“Finding accommodation that suits a family of six, including one in an electric wheelchair can be challenging. After a long search I found a house at Wurtulla on the Sunshine Coast and in January we set off for our first week’s holiday at the beach in two years. What we didn’t realise at the time was the fantastic opportunities that would be available to me at Currimundi Lake.
Not having been to the lake before, I set off with one of my sons for a milkshake at the lake cafe. By fortuitous circumstances, I was spotted by Gail Hargraves and Gail and Cliff were kind enough to track me down in the cafe, triggering a new friendship. I was then afforded some amazing hospitality by both Cliff and Gail, giving me the rundown of the area and, in particular, the beach wheelchair available at the cafe. I was able to get out to the entrance of the lake with my family and with a bit of help, and a tube borrowed from Cliff and Gail, ride the current towards the waves at the entrance to the lake. It was great fun and luckily somebody caught me before I got washed out to sea!
We had a fantastic holiday and situations like this remind me of the amazing value of our community and the tireless service of others. I will be forever grateful.”
Please note: Matthew will be speaking the Amputee Forum on March 14th at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.
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Sunshine Orthopaedic Services
Sunshine Orthopaedic Services became the first full time prosthetic provider based on the Sunshine Coast providing an unmatched service for our local and surrounding community.
Here at SOS we strive to break new boundaries in limb design and casting techniques. We have been blessed in Queensland by receiving a new budget from Queensland Amputee Limb Services for the provision of recreational limbs for kids under the age of 18.
This has given us the “License” to redesign all preconceived and practiced limb designs of the past as there now is an avenue to get these kids fitted with limbs for all the activities they have ever desired to participate in but never could because of funding restrictions.
To see an upper limb amputee doing cartwheels for the first time, to see a bilateral lower limb amputee swim proficiently and running on limbs specifically designed for that specific activity in mind is the greatest feeling for us and for them, it opens up a whole new world of possibilities and confidence like we have never seen before!
But all of these things cannot happen without a great team working together with the same goal in mind to achieve the optimal result for each and every individual that comes through our door for their prosthetic needs, no matter how simple or complex their needs may be.
We are only a small team – Dewet Heyns (Senior Prosthetist/Orthotist) and practice manager, with over 15 years of experience in both the Prosthetic and Orthotic fields, he has experience in all applications thereof. He is very passionate about his patients and will go out of his way to ensure a positive patient outcome to all. He welcomes all amputees that are thinking of changing over from other prosthetic providers to come in for free consultation as he respects the fact that it is a very big and personal decision for them to change to another provider. Then we have Meagan Hazel (Receptionist), she has the most amazing work ethic and forms a great rapport with all our patients that come through the door. We also are lucky to have the services of Stephen Saroglia (Senior Prosthetic/Orthotic Technician), with over 30 years’ experience in the field he is invaluable to our practice as he has superior skills in the fabrication of all our devices in both Prosthetic and/or Orthotic applications. He is well known among the amputee community on the Sunshine Coast.
Please contact our office on (07) 5441 2488 if we can assist you in any way possible.
Little Finn Smith with his new swimming limbs.
THE LIMBLESS MOUNTAINEER
In January ABC2 showed the documentary “The Limbless Mountaineer”. This took two years to film and shows the attempt Jamie Andrew, a quadruple amputee from Edinburgh, made to climb the Matterhorn in 2014. He almost reached the top but ran out of time.
He was meant to climb the Matterhorn in 2012 but preparations were halted when his climbing partner Roger Payne was killed in an avalanche. Mr Payne aged 55 was one of Britain’s leading climbers and was killed with eight others when they were hit by a 500 foot wide wall of snow in July 2012. They died while attempting to climb Mont Blanc 15,781 feet above sea level, which reinforces the dangers Mr Andrew faced in his attempt to climb the Matterhorn severely disabled.
The blizzard which left Jamie Andrew without his hands and feet also claimed the life of his climbing partner Jamie Fisher, who froze to death in the French Alps fifteen years ago. He was rescued in one of the most dramatic missions in the history of the Alps. He was rushed to hospital with hypothermia and severe frostbite and a few days later the surgeons had no option but to amputate his limbs. However he still wanted to be a mountaineer and has since gone on to raise thousands of pounds for charity with his remarkable efforts.
He said “Hopefully I have pushed back the boundaries of what disabled people can achieve.”
If you Google “The Limbless Mountaineer” I am sure you will find it very interesting.
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Support Groups and Resources
Amputee Support Association Sunshine Coast Inc. Artificial Limbs & Appliances Pty. Ltd. Aged & Community Hotline Aged Care Queensland Brisbane Prosthetics and Orthotics Caloundra Community Health Services Carers Queensland – Maroochydore Commonwealth Carelink Community Alternative Transport Services (Maroochydore) Council on the Ageing Disability Information Service Elder Abuse Helpline Goodwill Orthopaedics Home Assist Caloundra Home Assist Maroochydore Home Assist Noosaville Lifeline Sunshine Coast Maroochy Home Assist Secure Maroochydore Community Health Services M.A.S.S. (Medical Aids Subsidy Scheme) Meals on Wheels Caloundra Meals on Wheels Coolum Beach Meals on Wheels Maroochydore Meals on Wheels Nambour Meals on Wheels Tewantin-Noosa Nambour Community Health Services Nambour & District Care (including Transport) Noosa Community Health Services Queensland Amputee Limb Service (QALS) Royal Brisbane Hospital for Appointments St Vincent de Paul Caloundra St Vincent de Paul Maroochydore St Vincent de Paul Nambour St Vincent de Paul Noosaville Suncoast Cabs Ltd, Disabled Person Taxi Suncoast Community Cabs Suncoast Transport and Care (formerly H.A.C.C.) Sunshine Orthopaedic Services The St John’s Ambulance – Silver Cord Telephone The Salvation Army Currimundi The Salvation Army Maroochydore The Salvation Army Community Services Nambour Veteran’s Home Care Veteran’s Home Maintenance |
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AMPUTEE SUPPORT ASSOCIATION SUNSHINE COAST INC.
NEW APPLICATION Date: …………………………….
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Date of Amputation: ………………………… Are you a Diabetic: …………….. Cause of Amputation: ……………………………………………………………… TYPE OF AMPUTATION: Please circle the applicable items below LEG: Left / Right Above knee / Below knee ARM: Left / Right Above elbow / Below elbow I do not wish to become a member at this time but would like some further information
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