Paraplegic Benefit Fund Australia

Dominic Beirne

Road/Workplace/Youth

A motorcycle crash on the D’Aguilar Highway in the South Burnett region changed Dominic’s life forever. Dom became a paraplegic on October 9th, 2016 at 47 years of age. He had been accepted to the Army (RMC Duntroon) and was on a last ride with mates before preparing for his move to Canberra.

Dominic broke multiple ribs, his left collar bone, his scapula and his shoulder socket as well as ruptured his spleen and sustained a T6 Spinal Cord Injury.

Dominic now shares his story in the hopes of encouraging safer road, workplace and youth behaviours.

Amy Scott

Road/Youth

“It happened to me. It happened to my son. It can happen to anyone, and it will completely change your life.” 

Amy is a Mum of 5 children.  She was studying a Bachelor of Social Work to become a Child Protection Officer and working in youth mental health, when tragedy struck her family.

Crashes don’t just affect the person in the crash, the impact is far-reaching.  From the emergency services, witnesses and the family – the memory does not fade. 

Amy shares the story of the crash in which her son died, and the impact on her as a Mum and her family, is a story that all young people need to hear. 

Clare Nott

Road

Clare was only 2 years old when her family were involved in a fatigue related road crash.

She sustained a permanent spinal cord injury and has used a wheelchair ever since.

Clare adapted well to her new way of life, growing up going to school in a wheelchair and being very active. She was involved in swimming for many years but at 16 years old Clare was introduced to wheelchair basketball and was hooked! She loved this team sport and has played at State and National level; winning medals at the 2008 and 2012 Paralympics with the Gliders (the Australian Women’s Basketball team).

Clare now shares her story with high school students as part of PBF’s road safety program

Mark Farrell

Youth

Mark was 14 years old and had special dispensation to leave school, and get a job.

He came home one afternoon after work, and asked his Mum how long he had before dinner was ready. She told him 10 minutes, so Mark decided to go for a quick swim in their pool.

He jumped in, feet first, with his legs together, but his feet hit the bottom of the pool.

The reverberations from hitting the pool floor crushed the vertebrae and spinal cord in Mark’s neck. His brother called for help, and his mother and a neighbour were able to get him out of the pool and call an ambulance. Mark had been injured at the C4-C5 vertebrae, meaning he is now living with quadriplegia.

Today, Mark works hard with his hobbies of bee keeping, miniature horse breeding, whale watching and photography. He also attends schools to teach students about the importance of safety, not just around the pool, but in everyday life.

Darron Shields

Road/Youth/Workplace

PBF Injury Prevention Manager

“Always focus on what you are doing.”

Life for Darron in general was fantastic and 2002 was going to be a great year! He was a self-employed tradie and he had just returned from a long overseas holiday with the plan to move to Australia.

On 16 May, 2002 Darron had finished work early so, as a keen triathlete, he decided to head out on a training ride leading up to a local competition. This is the day Darron’s world turned upside down. Following a road accident he suffered permanent damage to his spinal cord resulting in paraplegia. Emergency surgery for 10-12 hours pinned fractures in both Darron’s neck and spine. His rehabilitation program took 8 months in hospital, including 8 weeks in a collar to repair the broken bones in his neck.

During this time Darron’s entire life was put on hold, along with his family and friends. As an incredibly motivated person, things eventually moved forward and his dream to live in Australia was fulfilled. Being a little sports mad, Darron now enjoys the sports of para-triathlon and hand-cycling, as they give the freedom of movement that he desires.

Professionally Darron hopes to make an impact on everyone who hears his story through his role with PBF Australia and their injury prevention programs.

Bianca McDonnell

Workplace

“Live every day to its fullest because you never know when your life might change”

Bianca was serving as a Remote Pilot and Maintainer for UAVs and Drones in the Royal Australian Navy, and she had a passion for surfing.

Safety was always at the forefront of her mind, as it was a heavy focus of the Australian Defense Force, so Bianca never thought she would end up with a permanent injury.

After a day of surfing, Bianca was cleaning the sand and saltwater off, when a tree collapsed and landed on her, breaking her spine in five places. She was in hospital for five months.

These days, Bianca enjoys spending time with her friends, playing trivia once a week and she has had her car modified so that she can remain independent.

David Coulston

Road/Workplace/Youth

David, at 21, was well on his way to fulfilling his dream of becoming an airline pilot when fate intervened one night. Celebrating at Camden airport with a colleague who had just landed a coveted jet-flying job, the evening took a drastic turn. Fueled by the thrill of the moment and some liquid courage, David and a friend decided to take a joyride down the deserted runway. It was an impulsive decision that altered David’s life forever.

Without his seatbelt on, the car hit gravel and rolled a number of times. David was ejected from the vehicle, suffering a severe L1-L2 spinal cord injury. The road to recovery was long and arduous—three months in the hospital followed by another 18 months in rehabilitation, learning to walk again with the aid of crutches.

Despite the immense challenges, David’s spirit remained undaunted. Today, he channels his energy into wheelchair tennis and wheelchair AFL during his free time. Reflecting on his journey, he shares a poignant perspective: “Time flies, but remember, YOU are the pilot.”

Joanna Fowler

Youth/Workplace

3 years after achieving her dream of moving to Australia with her husband and two young children, Joanna’s dream turned into a nightmare on 6th November, 2010, when she drunkenly fell and broke her neck, leaving Joanna with no active movement from her shoulders down.

What should have been a fun day at the food and wine festival, ended with guilt, remorse and a family changed forever. This was due to a chain of poor choices made throughout the day. Joanna was then left with the consequences of her actions and the long term effects, not just for herself, but also for her family.

Joanna is a C3 Complete Quadriplegic, using a chin controlled wheelchair with the need for a full time carer. Joanna doesn’t know what the future holds, but still believes in grasping and running with opportunities when they arise. Ten years on and Joanna’s life is full of meaning and spinal linked activities, that she never would have thought were possible. 

Joanna became involved with PBF Australia and works with their team to raise awareness of how easily spinal cord injury can happen or be prevented. 

Nick Dempsey

Youth/Road

“Positivity when faced with adversity.”

Nick Dempsey was working as a plumber and had dreams of making the Olympics after previously representing Australia in Water Polo, but in 2017, while celebrating his 21st birthday, Nick dove into his backyard pool, hit the bottom and sustained a spinal-cord injury resulting in him being a quadriplegic.

Since his injury, Nick continues to push himself to see what’s possible now in his wheelchair life. He started his own podcast, dabbled in modelling, and began coaching Water Polo. He aims to spread the message through PBF of what a positive attitude can do when faced with adversity.