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Parents’ pleas ignored: How a Perth hospital failed their daughter

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The parents grieving for their daughter who died while waiting to see a doctor at a Perth hospital are accusing “rude” staff of ignoring their pleas for help.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Aishwarya Aswath, seven, was rushed to Perth Children’s Hospital on Easter Sunday after she came down with a fever that was worsening.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Waiting for up to two hours in the emergency room to see a doctor, the girl’s eyes turned cloudy, her hands went cold, and she became rigid.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Parents Aswath Chavittupara and Prasitha Sasidharan begged staff to have a doctor look at their daughter multiple times but claim their worries were pushed aside.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When a doctor finally came to see Aishwarya it was too late, with the young girl passing away just 15 minutes later.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">An internal report investigating her death found she had succumbed to an infection related to a group A streptococcus. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Western Australian Health Minister Roger Cook conceded she and the family didn’t receive the appropriate level of care on the night they were in the hospital.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But the report found no individual was responsible for the lack of care and that staffing shortages weren’t a factor in her death.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Aishwarya’s death follows months of concerns regarding understaffing and delayed treatments across Perth’s hospitals.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When she was taken to hospital, the girl was placed in the second-least urgent category.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But even when it was clear to her parents that their daughter was rapidly deteriorating, they claimed their calls for help were mostly ignored.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I think some of the staff were ignoring us … they didn’t even pass on the message to their superiors so they could decide,” Mr Chavittupara said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Chavittupara and Ms Sasidharan said the report raised more questions than answers and are now pushing for an independent inquiry into their daughter’s death and other incidents.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We didn’t get the answers that we were looking for,” Mr Chavittupara told reporters on Thursday, May 13.</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /></span><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We knew they would only look at some of the areas and ignore the rest. That’s why we’ve been pushing for an external inquiry.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though Aishwarya’s parents have questioned whether their ethnicity was a factor in how they were treated, Mr Cook downplayed any race-related concerns.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Among the 11 recommendations presented in the Child and Adolescent Health Services was a review of the awareness of culturally and linguistically diverse communities among staff, while other recommendations included a pathway for parents to raise their concerns to staff and a second independent inquiry into the hospital’s emergency department.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Cook apologised to the family on behalf of the Western Australian government.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I wish to apologise unreservedly for this failure and for the heartbreak and devastation Aishwarya’s death has caused her family and community,” he said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“On behalf of the McGowan Government, Child and Adolescent Health Services, and all the health community, I say to Aishwarya’s family - I am sorry.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Chavittupara said an apology was “not good enough” and that the system should be changed to prevent similar events from happening again.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We lost our child,” Ms Sasidharan said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This shouldn’t happen to anybody else.”</span></p> <p><strong>Image credit: 9News</strong></p>

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"Struggling to survive": Blanche d’Alpuget speaks about late Bob Hawke

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>It's been almost two years since former Prime Minister Bob Hawke passed away and his wife of 24 years Blanche d’Alpuget remembers him with "great affection and admiration".</p> <p>Hawke died at the age of 89 on May 16th, 2019.</p> <p>D’Alpuget spoke with Michael Usher on<span> </span><em>The Latest</em><span> </span>on Thursday night about how her life has changed since her husband passed away as well as dealing with her grief and battling breast cancer.</p> <p>“It took up so much of my time, because first I had months of chemotherapy, and then I had to recover from that,” she said.</p> <p>“Then I had a big surgery and recover from that, and then have more drugs pumped into me.</p> <p>“So in a way, the first anniversary of his death wasn’t as bad because I was just struggling to survive.”</p> <p>As she struggled with chemotherapy, she felt "so tired".</p> <p>“But there’s a feeling of sisterhood and brotherhood between all people who’ve experienced cancer, really; only they know what it’s like,” she said.</p> <p>“I didn’t think I was going to die during any of it; I knew I was going to survive.”</p> <p>She also reflected on Hawke before he passed away as he became "sweeter and sweeter" as he got older.</p> <p>“It was really wonderful. Our love just got stronger and stronger,” she said.</p> <p>“My life is simpler now, but it’s missing an element, a very large element.”</p> </div> </div> </div>

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Shock as Prince Charles almost married his third cousin

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in element-type-p"> <p>Royal fans were left in awe after a new ITV documentary revealed that Prince Charles almost married his third cousin.</p> <p>The documentary called<span> </span><em>The Queen &amp; Her Cousins</em><span> </span>dived into the lives of the Queen and her family, including Princess Olga Romanoff, whose the grand-niece of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia.</p> <p>Olga Romanoff is the third cousin that was considered to be a suitable bride for Prince Charles as she had "An title. Foreign. Breeding. And possibly because I was 17 and they were all quite young, virginity was good. I was so virginal!"</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height:281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7841168/prince-charles-cousin-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4bf622969acd4821b35a9827bd505e58" /></p> <p>It wasn't meant to be as Prince Charles quickly matched with Diana Spencer, who was the daughter of family friends instead of his cousins.</p> <p>Prince Charles first met Diana when he was 29 and she was 16, as the prince was friends with her older sister.</p> <p>It wasn't long before Prince Charles announced his engagement to Lady Diana, but the pair had only met 12 or 13 times before he proposed.</p> <p>Despite being married on July 29, 1981, the marriage was plagued with infidelity rumours and the pair split in 1992.</p> <p>They were divorced in 1996 and Princess Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris when her sons Prince William and Prince Harry were only 15 and 12.</p> </div> </div> </div>

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Red Symons says Bert Newton staying positive following leg amputation

<div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in element-type-p"> <p>Fans of Bert Newton have been extremely anxious after news of the TV legend having to have his leg amputated broke on Monday.</p> <p>However, close family friends Rhonda Burchomroe and Red Symons have confirmed that Newton is maintaining his happy outlook on life despite the operation.</p> <p>"I mean I was as shocked as anyone yesterday when I heard the news," Burchmore said.</p> <p>"He is cracking jokes, apparently, with all the medical staff.</p> <p>"He has been in my life and been such a mentor and support for so many people through all the years.</p> <p>"I am sure if anyone can kind of move on and do incredible things he will."</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Bert Newtown's family have rallied around the hospitalised TV icon, with his wife Patti saying Bert "chose life" when given an ultimatum by doctors - months to live, or have the lower part of his right leg removed. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/9Today?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#9Today</a><br /><br />More on this story: <a href="https://t.co/q8LlaT3v2o">https://t.co/q8LlaT3v2o</a> <a href="https://t.co/csekqYOeNa">pic.twitter.com/csekqYOeNa</a></p> — The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheTodayShow/status/1391842864221626371?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2021</a></blockquote> <p>The 82-year-old entertainment legend is diabetic and has suffered numerous health issues, including undergoing a quadruple heart bypass in 2012.</p> <p>Symons said that the family has high hopes that Newton would be able to continue with his entertainment career.</p> <p>"I guess moving forward, we hope that he is able to come back and work. If he doesn't what a massive body of work that he has," Symons said.</p> </div>

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Queen speaks at length for first time since passing of Prince Phillip

<p>Queen Elizabeth has spoken at length for the first time since her husband Prince Philip died.</p> <p>Speaking to the Royal Life Saving Society via video call, the Queen looked calm and composed as she looked back fondly at the time when she was awarded the Life Saving Award as a young girl.</p> <p>Queen Elizabeth was just 14 when she earned her junior respiration award in February 1941.</p> <p>She was the first young person in the Commonwealth to achieve the award.</p> <p>“I didn’t realise I was the first one - I just did it, and had to work very hard for it,” the Queen said in the video call.</p> <p>“It was a great achievement and I was very proud to wear the badge on the front of my swimming suit.</p> <p>“It was very grand, I thought.”</p> <p>When the Queen said it had happened “a long time ago,” deputy Commonwealth president of the society, Clive Holland, said: “Your Majesty, when you say it was a long time ago, it was in fact 80 years ago.”</p> <p>“That’s terrible!”, Queen Elizabeth, 95, responded.</p> <p>The Royal Life Saving Society works across 30 different Commonwealth countries, aiming to eliminate preventable death by drowning, promoting water safety and lifeguarding education.</p> <p>Queen Elizabeth “virtually” presented Stephen Beerman with the King Edward VII Cup, awarded every two years in recognition of outstanding contributions to drowning prevention.</p> <p>The Queen has been the patron of the Royal Life Saving Society since 1952.</p>

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Matt Damon photobombs Brisbane charity event and donates large sum

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>Movie superstar Matt Damon, 50, surprised guests at a domestic violence charity event in Brisbane and made a generous donation.</p> <p>Damon and his wife Luciana Barroso, 45, have spent the last few days in Queensland and attended the event for Safe Haven at the Calile Hotel on Friday.</p> <p>“My mum founded a charity fighting domestic violence. During a fundraising lunch, Matt Damon dropped in and donated $10,000,” in a since-deleted post on social media network Reddit read.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COkU931JHzq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COkU931JHzq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Louise Carroll (@louisecarroll21)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>"Had the pleasure of meeting this gracious man today at the Safe Haven Community charity lunch. Matt Damon has a generous heart space ❤️ Well done to Catherine and her team at The Calile Hotel on such a successful fundraising lunch for such a needed cause," one excited fan wrote on Instagram.</p> <p>Damon is currently in Australia filming<span> </span><em>Thor: Love and Thunder</em><span> </span>alongside Chris Hemsworth, which is something Damon is "so excited" about.</p> <p>“I’m so excited that my family and I will be able to call Australia home for the next few months,” he said.</p> <p>“Australian film crews are world-renowned for their professionalism and are a joy to work with so the 14 days of quarantine will be well worth it.”</p> </div> </div> </div>

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“Sad” detail in Queen’s birthday post for Archie

<p>The Queen, along with other members of the royal family have shared a "Happy Birthday" message via her social media account for her great-grandson Archie's second birthday.</p> <p>But royal fans have discovered a "sad" detail, as the photos used by the family include a snub.</p> <p>"Wishing Archie Mountbatten-Windsor a very happy 2nd birthday today," the caption on the monarch's post read.</p> <p>The photo was of the Sussex family, which was taken two years ago when Archie was first introduced to the world.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhWKhMnDFe/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhWKhMnDFe/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by The Royal Family (@theroyalfamily)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>William and Kate chose a large family photo from Archie's Christening, while the Clarence House account of Charles and Camilla also used a photo from the same day, but appear to have cut Meghan out of the snap.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhdfeWFx6y/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhdfeWFx6y/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (@dukeandduchessofcambridge)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Now royal fans have pointed out how 'awkward' it is that the old images seemed to be the only ones there were to use for the birthday posts.</p> <p>"Is that the only photo they have, taken two years ago?" one person asked.</p> <p>"Happy birthday to Her Majesty's grand child. (Sad this page can't use more recent pic.)" another also noted.</p> <p>While a third wrote: "It's sad that The Royal Family doesn't have an updated photo of Archie. The heartbreak... 😢"</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhct4fDCqb/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COhct4fDCqb/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Clarence House (@clarencehouse)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>"Very sad state of affairs when the supposed future king cuts the mother of his grandchild out of the photo with which he chooses to share. Yes, they haven’t seen Archie for over 12mnths, but to not include Meghan," was another comment.</p> <p>Meghan and Harry have made a touching request of the public on their son Archie's second birthday, saying they "cannot think of a more resonant way" to honour him.</p> <p>In a statement published on their website titled "Join Us in Advocating for Vaccine Equity on Archie's Birthday", they invited people to “contribute whatever you can — if you have the means to do so — to bring vaccines to families in the world’s most vulnerable places.”</p> <p>The Duke of Duchess of Sussex said they had been “deeply touched over the past two years” to feel the “warmth and support” offered to their family on their son's birthday.</p> <p>They also acknowledged those who donate to charities on their behalf during monumental occasions, saying they were "incredibly grateful".</p> <p>Meghan and Harry, who are campaign chairs for the Tax Live concert to raise money for vaccine access, said that $5 could "cover the cost of a dose for someone in need”.</p> <p>The couple have secured matching support from several organisations so that every $5 donated up to $3 million will automatically turn into $20, funding four vaccine doses.</p> <p>The California-based royals noted: “While some places are on the verge of healing, in so many parts of the world, communities continue to suffer. As of today, around 80 percent of the nearly one billion COVID-19 vaccine shots that have been given were administered in wealthier countries. While we may feel that normalcy is around the corner, we remind ourselves that in much of the world, and especially in developing countries, vaccine distribution has effectively yet to start.”</p> <p>Donations to<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/connect/duke-duchess-sussex-covax-donation/" target="_blank">Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance</a><span> </span>can be made via advocacy group Global Citizen.</p> <p>“We cannot think of a more resonant way to honour our son’s birthday,” the pair added. “If we all show up, with compassion for those we both know and don’t know, we can have a profound impact. Even a small contribution can have a ripple effect.”</p>

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Sam Newman casually predicted wife's death

<p>Geelong Cats legend Sam Newman has revealed how he predicted his wife's death on his podcast<span> </span><em>You Cannot Be Serious</em>.</p> <p>He was delivering a heartfelt tribute when he made the casual comment about how he knew something was wrong when he was unable to reach his wife, Amanda, 50.</p> <p>Newman, 75, told listeners that he was concerned after being unable to reach his wife.</p> <p>“I’d been working on a boat, which Amanda hated incidentally, and I was working with someone on it 300m from where she was… and we’re going down to get fish and chips to eat for dinner, and I thought Amanda might want to come with us,” he said on his podcast.</p> <p>“We get down to where we’re going… and I tried to ring her to ask if she wanted to come down. We’d rung her, I’d rung her six times.</p> <p>“So we got down there, we’re sitting around eating the fish and chips and I said, ‘I wonder where Amanda is’ and we all… I don’t know if I should say this.”</p> <p>He paused before continuing.</p> <p>“We’re joking about, ‘She might be out at a venue or out at the pub or out with the girls or out doing something’ and I said, ‘She’s probably lying dead up in the flat’, just as an aside,” Newman said.</p> <p>“And I said, ‘Oh, she could have been in an accident’.</p> <p>“I get home and I walk in the door and the television’s on in the bedroom.</p> <p>“So I look down there and lying in her underwear — she’d obviously been in bed or she got out of bed to get something to eat.</p> <p>“She’s lying there on the tiles outside the laundry and as soon as I saw her I knew she was dead, I just knew it.”</p> <p>Newman's heartbreaking experience wasn't over as he was asked to perform CPR on his wife for 20 minutes until emergency services arrived.</p> <p>“So I rang triple-zero and the very helpful person on the end said you better try and give CPR and she talked me through that and I had the phone on speakerphone and I’m pumping this poor woman who’s lying there looking so peaceful (but) obviously to me, dead,” Newman said.</p> <p>“But the operator said just keep doing it in case there’s a spark of life in her. So I did that for 20 minutes, giving CPR to what I knew was a corpse.</p> <p>“Then everyone arrived and when it all ended it was futile trying to get into bed after that so I thought what else do you do. So I lay down for half an hour then I got up and I wrote this, and I’m going to read it out.”</p> <p>Newman teared up while reading the letter.</p> <p>“It’s been 24 hours since I arrived home and found dear Amanda lying on her side on the tiles beside the laundry. She looked so gentle and calm and innocent but somehow I knew instantly she was dead,” he said.</p> <p>“So why am I writing this? Maybe it’s cathartic or maybe I want to share what a relationship means to me because at 75 years of age it has taken three-quarters of a century to discover the formula.</p> <p>“I’ve married and loved a number of women, and for extended periods of time have enjoyed a harmonious existence with them all but sadly not an everlasting one, obviously.</p> <p>“The reason they did not endure are complex yet so simple. Relentlessness, tension, ego, simmering angst and above all stubbornness to yield.</p> <p>“In her 20s, Amanda’s mission in life was for me to be her man. She told the person she lived with, a boy, as much.</p> <p>“I kept noticing her the same places I was at and enjoyed her company, I thought it was just a coincidence but it wasn’t - she wanted me.</p> <p>“I knew exactly where she came from and what she did and while my friends were somewhat bemused, my friends are real friends, unconditional.</p> <p>“For the last 15 years, we lived together and had not one verbal or physical confrontation. Some strong words occasionally for sure but she had the knack of not prolonging such rifts due to her innate nature of compromise.</p> <p>“I have never been happier in the last decade and arriving home at the end of a day was such a genuinely pleasant thing I looked forward to as there was never any harbouring angst pent up in either of us.”</p> <p><em>Photo credits:<span> </span></em><a rel="noopener" href="https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/sam-newman-recalls-freakish-prediction-just-moments-before-finding-wife-dead-c-2769660" target="_blank"><em>7NEWS</em></a></p>

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Cancer surgeon writes his own joke-filled obituary before dying

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A US surgeon has jumped the gun and written a quirky obituary about himself before he died at 48.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Dr Thomas Lee Flanagan passed on April 27, but his cause of death is not publicly known.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In a post published on </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/toledoblade/obituary.aspx?n=thomas-lee-flanigan&amp;pid=198520306&amp;fbclid=IwAR08jHG4hN-UFNjxvslLCmYy1YpR-XK5gFKXnFVh5LEzQX7epBPWJglLDss" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Legacy.com</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> - a website dedicated to obituaries - he jokingly described himself as the “Ginger God of Surgery and Shenanigans”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Yes, I have joined the likes of Princess Diana, John Belushi, and Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter in leaving while still at the top of my game as an iconic superhero who seemed almost too good to be true,” he wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to the post, the army veteran and father of three said he married his wife Amy so he could make husband jokes, then had three children so he could make Dad jokes.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It did not disappoint,” he wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The jokes I mean, but Amy and the kids were pretty good too.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Flanagan writes that his time “was magical” and “saw some other delightful things in my time here - Hawaiian volcanoes, Egyptian pyramids, and even the advent of air fryers.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though he “dabbled” in a few things, including serving his country in the army and saving lives as a surgeon and MD, his real legacy is the bad Dad jokes and Facebook memes he’ll leave behind.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“What was I to this world if not a beacon of light shining upon those who couldn’t scan the internet for their own hilarious and entertaining comic relief?” he wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I guess what I am trying to say is that you’re welcome and you owe me big time.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He ends his obituary announcing he is riding off into the sunset “after re-enlisting with a new unit.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He continued, “Due to the unknown and cosmic nature of my next mission, this will be our last communication. It will self-destruct in five minutes.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though his whereabouts “are now top secret” he has made new friends called Elvis and Kenny.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The Church of Tom is closed for business, but please continue to worship me, light candles, and send money. You know the deal,” the obituary read.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tributes to Flanagan also flooded in on the online condolence page.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You meant so very much to me. The world is dimmer without you in it,” a former patient wrote.</span></p>

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“Cruel and heartless”: Board denies request for Oatlands memorial

<p>The heartbroken family of the four young children killed in the horrific Oatlands car crash last year have once again been denied a permit to build a memorial at the place they passed.</p> <p>The Abdallah children, Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna, 8, and their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11, were tragically run down and killed by a drunk driver on the outskirts of Oatlands Golf Club, in Sydney's northwest, last year.</p> <p>The driver, Samuel William Davidson, was sentenced to a minimum of 21 years in jail last month.</p> <p>But the families' hope to build a spot to honour their four children has been struck down once again by the board of the Oatlands Golf Club.</p> <p>A statement from the families today asked the board to reconsider its refusal of the commemorative garden.</p> <p>“We love our children dearly and we will always grieve the loss of our beautiful kids,” the families said.</p> <p>“Our proposed commemorative garden simply honours our children, Antony, Angelina, Sienna and Veronique and our survivors Liana, Charbel and Mabelle.</p> <p>“We respectfully ask the board to reconsider its decision so that our children can be honoured and the community can have a place to remember the Oatlands tragedy, which had such an impact on our nation.”</p> <p>The planned garden, designed in collaboration with Parramatta City Council, has now been rejected twice by the board.</p> <p>Their latest decision was on the grounds the garden would "unduly remind neighbours of the tragedy".</p> <p>Oatlands Golf Club general manager Sam Howe emailed members in March, claiming the council’s designs were “well outside the scale of what had been communicated as appropriate”.</p> <p>“The board and management recognise the terrible tragedy caused by this accident, while at the same time recognising our responsibility to the club and its members,” Mr Howe said.</p> <p>The memorial would take up a very small amount of bushy space on the golf course.</p> <p>Local MPs are also throwing their support behind the memorial, with their constituents pushing for a decision.</p> <p>“I think you need to use your influence, Geoff Lee, to advise the board at the Oatlands Golf Club that refusing a memorial seat for the four children that died in the car accident is offensive, cruel, heartless and not community minded in anyway,” one of Mr Lee’s constituents wrote.</p>

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Dying man granted his final wish

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> A dying man had his wish of a day at the races fulfilled at Morphettville’s racing track in Adelaide.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Paramedics were taking Nigel Latham home from hospital to enter palliative home care when they had a simple question for him.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“They asked me if I’d like to stop anywhere on the way,” Nigel said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I had been watching the racing in hospital, so wanted to go there.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ambulance officer Bec Sanders and colleague Laura granted the 58-year-old’s request.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“In normal circumstances I would've been there for a great day of racing,” Nigel said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I’ve been a member of the South Australian Jockey Club for the last three years and own shares in a couple of horses.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Bec and Laura worked miracles and got me there. They are commended for their care and sheer goodness of their spirit.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nigel got to watch the action from the 200m mark with his wife Julie, and became the inspiration for a Melbourne Cup-winning jockey.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After learning of Nigel’s dying wish, Craig Williams was overcome with emotion and rode Lady Dunmore to victory.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Nigel Latham, he was the inspiration for her success today,” Williams said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After his victory, Williams rode over to Nigel and gifted him a souvenir.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“To Nigel, I said to my horse if she’d get over the line we’d make sure we give him the winning goggles and she did her job really well.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We’d like to be grateful to people like Nigel who support the industry and have his last dying wish (of) coming here today for a great race day.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another thoughtful racegoer named Matt also joined in on the good spirit, offering him an ice-cold beer.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nigel said the day had become one of the most memorable experiences of his life, especially with his wife by his side.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Given only days to live, Nigel Latham had a wish to go to the races one last time in Adelaide. The hospital and ambulance drivers made it happen. <br /><br />Hear Bensley read his emotional message of thanks after his day at the Morphettville track on Saturday. <br /><br />Incredible. <a href="https://t.co/KZ9POXfxnv">pic.twitter.com/KZ9POXfxnv</a></p> — SENTrack (@SEN_track) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEN_track/status/1389026708074885120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“People are amazing,” he said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I’ve had brilliant care at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. They have all tried so hard for me and then getting me to the races yesterday meant so much.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He praised the kindness of the paramedics, saying, “Thanks to Bec and Laura for making it happen, to Ian (Richardo, Morphettville track manager) for facilitating it. For Matt for the beer and for Craig for caring so much.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bec said Nigel was exhausted but told 7NEWS “it was really lovely to see him home and happy.”</span></p> <p><strong>Image credit: 7NEWS</strong></p>

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Prince Charles' sweet tribute to Prince Philip

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>The royal family are sending out thank you cards to royal fans who sent in their condolences after the loss of Prince Philip, 99.</p> <p>The Prince of Wales was one who issued replies to people who had offered their condolences on the passing of his father.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COU-GSbn-VS/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COU-GSbn-VS/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Lise M (@lise_m_d)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Prince Charles chose a sweet photo of Prince Philip and himself in a small boat with his father in Cowes.</p> <p>"The Prince of Wales thanks you so much for your very kind message of sympathy," the accompanying message read.</p> <p>"His Royal Highness has been enormously touched by the many generous messages that have been received in recent days; they have provided great comfort at this very sad time."</p> <p>It concluded, "The Prince of Wales sends you his warmest thanks and best wishes."</p> <p>The card was shared by royal fan Lisa on Instagram in reply to a card she had sent to Clarence House.</p> </div> </div> </div>

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Gold Coast family in mourning over 1 in 4,500 death

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>A Queensland family is mourning the loss of an 11-year-old boy who died after sustaining a seizure in his sleep.</p> <p>Jett Somerhayes-Nixon died on ANZAC Day after failing to wake up after the seizure in his sleep.</p> <p>His aunt, Lucy Somerhayes, wrote on the<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/jettys-sendoff-family-support?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&amp;utm_medium=copy_link_all&amp;utm_source=customer" target="_blank">family's GoFundMe page</a><span> </span>that their “Jetty Spaghetti” had autism and was “plagued by seizures over the past few years”.</p> <p>“But although it wasn't easy, he was the happiest little boy, he loved to sing, dance and make everyone laugh... he was at his happiest if everyone was laughing, singing and dancing with him,” Ms Somerhayes wrote.</p> <p>“He has now gone on to 'rave in paradise', but his family needs help right now to help with funeral costs and give him the send-off he deserved, and to help support them whilst they try and face life without their young, happy, smiley, singing boy.”</p> <p>Somerhayes spoke to<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/unbearable-family-mourns-boy-who-died-from-seizure-sleep-003651622.html" target="_blank"><em>Yahoo! News</em></a><span> </span>about the loss of her nephew.</p> <p>"It's completely unfair and unbearable that such a massive personality could leave us in such a tragic way," she said.</p> <p>"It's so incredibly quiet without him."</p> <p>Jett suffered from 50 to 60 seizures a day, which led to him being hospitalised as well as needing a wheelchair to get around.</p> <p>However, the family said that Jett hadn't had a major seizure for months before he died.</p> <p>The family believe that Jett died from Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP), as the family found out the cause of death on Thursday and want people to be aware.</p> <p>“In general, people living with epilepsy are at a one in 1,000 risk of SUDEP per year,” Epilepsy Australia says.</p> <p>“In children, SUDEP is an even rarer occurrence with the risk as low as one in 4,500. Most, but not all, cases of SUDEP occur during or immediately after a seizure.”</p> <p><em>Photo credits:<span> </span></em><a rel="noopener" href="https://au.news.yahoo.com/unbearable-family-mourns-boy-who-died-from-seizure-sleep-003651622.html" target="_blank"><em>Yahoo! News</em></a></p> </div> </div> </div>

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"I’m not upset": Leila Abdallah speaks out after home invasion

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>The Abdallah family have tried to move on after losing three children in one accident, but the blows keep coming after they were robbed of several sentimental items by thieves on Wednesday.</p> <p>Danny and Leila Abdallah's family home was robbed by a masked intruder around 11:45 am just a year after their three children, Antony, 13, Angelina, 12 and nine-year-old Sienna as well as their 11-year-old niece Veronique were killed by an out-of-control driver in Oatlands last year.</p> <p>Leila, 36, said that she had been busy looking at photos of her children when she noticed someone leaving with a big black bag through the unlocked front door.</p> <p>“He took a lot of personal items (but) it’s not about the items, these items are sentimental to us,” she said to media yesterday.</p> <p>“With every item, we have memories of our kids. He took a watch but it’s not about the watch, this watch reminds me of me and Angelina walking together to the store to buy this watch.”</p> <p>“I was in shock, I just walked outside … people are looking at us thinking ‘you guys have been through enough this year.”</p> <p>Home security tapes show the moment the man fleed the scene in a stolen white Audi, with a man waiting in the car to escape quickly.</p> <p>Cumberland Police Area Commander Detective Superintendent Darryl Jobson said that the crime was "absolutely disgusting" given the "incredible ordeal" but has said that the crime did not appear to be targeted.</p> <p>“I appeal to the conscience of the people responsible for the crime to hand themselves in to the police and to return the property of those victims,” he said.</p> <p>“It is abhorrent to enter anyone’s home whilst people are there. It is a breach of people’s privacy.”</p> <p>Despite the robbery, Leila said that she's "not going to lose sleep over it".</p> <p>“I’m not going to lose sleep over it, at the end of the day life keeps going and there’s more to life than that,” she explained.</p> <p>“Life is challenging, life is full of challenges, and I definitely forgive him, I’m not upset … what matters most in life are my kids.</p> <p>“Family is more important than anything.”</p> </div> </div> </div>

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Johnny Ruffo provides update on brain cancer battle

<p>Johnny Ruffo has provided a brief but positive update on his battle with cancer, taking to social media to say he was still "fighting the good fight".</p> <p>Taking to Facebook and Instagram, the singer and former Home and Away star shared a photo of himself giving the thumbs up as he sat in a hospital chair while receiving treatment.</p> <p>“Been busy fighting the good fight,” he wrote.</p> <p>“Another round down ... Bring on the next.”</p> <p>The picture was his first on Instagram since March 8 - his 33rd birthday - when he posed with girlfriend Tahnee Sims, calling her an "amazing girl".</p> <p>And it was Ruffo's first post on Facebook since February 21, where he was pictured with fellow Home and Away star Lynne McGranger, who plays Irene Roberts.</p> <p>“Always a pleasure catching up with this beautiful lady,” he captioned the post.</p> <p>Ruffo announced in November last year that his brain cancer had returned for a second time.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CONJsdvl9GV/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CONJsdvl9GV/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Johnny Ruffo (@johnny_ruffo)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>“After an unexpected week of seizures and excruciating headaches it is with a heavy heart that I have to let you know I now have another huge battle ahead of me as my brain cancer has returned,” he wrote on Instagram on November 24.</p> <p>“I will dig deep and beat this s*** disease.”</p> <p>Since then he has posted several updates, often with Sims, who was with him during his first diagnosis.</p> <p>His most recent update had fans wishing him well.</p> <p>“Australia is right behind you matey,” one follower wrote on Facebook.</p> <p>“Sending you all the strength and positive vibes you need to get through.”</p> <p>“You don’t have to be strong and you don’t have to fight, you can feel scared and be tired ... cancer sux and bravery is overrated,” another wrote.</p> <p>“Going through treatment as well. This is my 3rd return of the big C. Just keeping the fight going,” one fan wrote.</p> <p>In August 2017, Ruffo revealed he had undergone surgery to remove a brain tumour.</p> <p>During an interview in May 2019, he announced he was cancer-free.</p> <p>Last year he spoke about the support network that got him through it.</p> <p>“It’s about the support group around you, and not being afraid to ask for help,” Ruffo said on The Morning Show.</p> <p>“It’s not just related to my experience with cancer.</p> <p>“Everyone goes through something that’s tough, that they might feel is too hard to handle on their own.</p> <p>“And when you do go through these things, there’s always someone to help you.”</p>

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Family left devastated after toddler’s heartbreaking diagnosis: “He was screaming in pain”

<p>A heartbroken mum from the Central Coast of NSW heartbreakingly revealed she never expected her 18-month-old son’s usual afternoon nap to turn into something so sinister.</p> <p>Sarah Fryc said that when she woke her son, Eden, up, after a long day of playing with his diggers and dinosaurs, he could no longer walk.</p> <p>“He was screaming in pain. It came out of nowhere,” she told to <a href="https://www.essentialbaby.com.au/toddler/toddler-health/he-woke-up-and-couldnt-walk-family-shattered-after-toddlers-diagnosis-20210426-h1vg4g?utm_source=nine&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=homepage"><em>Essential Baby.</em></a></p> <p>Sarah rushed Eden to her local GP, and what was thought to be a hip infection was revealed to be leukaemia.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840944/charles-spencer-3.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/49d6135100c04df0bbf79d570540d3a3" /></p> <p>The toddler’s parents were shattered, with Sarah saying: "It felt like the world had closed in on me and I couldn't escape.</p> <p>Little Eden was rushed to the Sydney Children's Hospital that same night, where he would end up spending the next two months full-time, alongside his mum.</p> <p>Little Eden was rushed to Sydney Children’s Hospital, where he would spend his time for the next two months.</p> <p>Sarah says it was not only the toddler who suffered, but his big sister Charlotte, and dad Stephen.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840946/charles-spencer.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/d6a906fc71b54a419a41274f6b18e62d" /></p> <p>"Treatment began straight away," Sarah said.</p> <p>"And it left him exhausted and often too sick to leave his bed.</p> <p>"It was really hard to see him stuck in hospital for weeks on end, constantly being poked and prodded. It's bittersweet as I knew he had no choice but to get used to it.</p> <p>“He is usually such an active and cheeky kid. No one wants to see their kid in pain and stressed."</p> <p>The family were eventually “torn in two” when Sarah and Eden were forced to relocate to Sydney so he could continue on with his chemotherapy treatment.</p> <p>However, Sarah and Stephen say their son, who is now three, has made remarkable strides.</p> <p>"Eden is so resilient,” Sarah admitted.</p>

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Mum’s warning after daughter stung by wasp: “Check your laundry”

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A mum has taken to social media with a warning to parents after her daughter was stung by a wasp caught in her clothes.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Having hung her daughter Kathleen’s clothes out to dry, Sabrina Rigby said the insect must have climbed in and subsequently stung the six-year-old.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“WARNING. Check your laundry!” she wrote in a Facebook post. In the post, she said that she’d hung her daughter’s clothes on the line to dry the day before.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This queen wasp has emerged from hibernation and gotten caught up in the clothes,” she recounted. “The clothes which I then bagged and left in the girls room to be packed away.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I didn’t know she was there until this morning, when she managed to wriggle her way out of the bag and sting Kathleen,” the mum said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“She is okay and luckily, it turns out, not allergic like I am. But you can bet I’ll be checking  all my laundry from now on!” </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Commenters were thankful for the advice and shared their appreciation for the mum sharing her story.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Now peering inside my slippers before I put my feet in!!” one woman wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I got one in my sons pjs last week when I was folding them,” another shared.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Concerned about her daughter, others warned the mum to keep an eye on her in case she actually is allergic.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“You don’t tend to react badly to a first exposure, it is subsequent exposures that she’ll react to if she’s allergic,” one mum advised. “Keep a close eye if she gets stung again in the future.” </span></p> <p><strong>Image credit: Sharina Rigby / Facebook </strong></p>

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Two families unite over Christmas balloon

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Christmas came for a second time for two twin sisters, after a stranger more than 100km away found a holiday wish list attached to a balloon.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In December, Leticia Flores-Gonzalez had the idea for her two 4-year-olds, Luna and Gianella Gonzalez, to tie their Christmas lists to balloons and set them free above their Kansas home.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">With the difficult year behind them, it was their way of reaching Santa Claus.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Flore-Gonzalez told CNN, “It was important doing something special for my girls because of the hard year we had during the coronavirus pandemic. I wanted them to feel like 2020 was another year spent with mom making beautiful memories.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It was never with the purpose someone would find the balloon. I thought it would deflate and would just disappear somewhere in a tree nearby.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But someone with a white beard and a big heart did find one of the balloons.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">While hunting deer in Grand Cane, Louisiana in late December, Alvin Bamburg spotted one of the balloons tangled in a tree.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I saw that balloon and God spoke to me. He said, ‘You need to get this, and, second of all, you need to get the trash out of the woods,’” Bamburg told CNN.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“When I got it I noticed a folded yellow piece of paper sealed with a red star, and it was a Christmas list from a girl named Luna.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height:280.7692307692308px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840931/christmas-list.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/da6784e762294890ac05a1785dd3872f" /></span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">What had Luna asked Santa for? The list included candy, a Spider Man ball, a Frozen doll, a My Little Pony toy, and a puppy.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though the holidays kept Bamburg and his wife, Lee Ann Leopard Bamburg, busy, the list stayed at the back of their minds.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Once the holiday season had wound down, Bamburg shared his discovery with family and friends via a Facebook post in early January.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bamburg wrote, “Would love to know when it was launched. Looks like it traveled over 600 miles. Feel free to share.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">So many people shared the post that it was eventually found by Flores-Gonzalez.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“When we found out someone actually found Luna’s balloon, we were just in shock,” she said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We couldn’t believe how kind people were; we were overwhelmed with love. That’s what really mattered.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After receiving requests to share Gianella’s list, Flores-Gonzalez did, and both girls received gifts from Bamburg’s family, friends, coworkers, and even old schoolmates.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Following months of communication, the two families finally met in-person. The Bamburgs drove six hours to meet Flores-Gonzalez and the twins and gave them one final present.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We had texted, talked, and FaceTimed before we even met, and it was clear we had a connection,” Bamburg said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“When we met, it was just like meeting family.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It was during the meeting that Bamburg gave the girls a dachshund puppy, fulfilling the last of Luna’s Christmas wishes. Overjoyed, the girls quickly named the pup Max.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Over a meal, the families laughed and bonded over shared values.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“To us, it isn’t the amount of gifts or the value that the girls are receiving,” Flores-Gonzalez said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It’s the love they received. It meant the world to us we see their smiles, and the lifelong friendship we have made with Alvin and his wife.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The families will continue meeting too, with their next reunion scheduled for the end of May.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the meantime, Bamburg hopes to inspire others to take a break and makes someone else’s day a little brighter.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“There’s so much sadness in the world right now, the world is a freaking mess,” he said. “It’s really not hard to spread kindness, and you can never underestimate the impact even just a smile will have on someone’s day.”</span></p> <p><strong>Image credits: CNN</strong></p>

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Eager to learn: A man’s love for his wife sends him to beauty school

<div id="fb-root"></div> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">While we might think grand gestures are the best way to show loved ones we care, it can be the smallest things that can really get the message across.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">One man found this to be true when news of his act of kindness for his wife flooded social media recently.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The elderly man, realising that his wife’s ailing vision meant she struggled styling her hair with curlers as she had done for so many years, stepped in to help. To make sure he helped her look her best, he sought lesions from the professionals.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">When he went to the Delmar College of Hair and Aesthetics Red Deer in Alberta, Canada he asked if they were running any makeup classes he could join to learn tips and tricks.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Instead of attending a class, apprentice hairdresser Britney and some fellow students offered to teach him on the spot. Sharing the story on her Facebook business site, the stylist said they had been very happy to oblige.</span></p> <div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/hairdesignbybritney/posts/103659755204446" data-width="500" data-show-text="true"> <blockquote class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore"> <p>This lovely gentleman came in today to learn how to curl his wife’s hair. His wife is unable to curl her own hair and...</p> Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/hairdesignbybritney/">Hair Design By Britney</a> on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/hairdesignbybritney/posts/103659755204446">Thursday, April 22, 2021</a></blockquote> </div> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This lovely gentleman came in today to learn how to curl his wife’s hair. His wife is unable to curl her own hair and often burns herself, so he stepped up to the plate and learned how to curl her hair,” she wrote.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We had the pleasure of teaching him! We taught him how to do volume curls on short hair, how to protect her skin from being burned and we even taught him to put on her mascara.:</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In their own update, the college said it showed the testament of long-term love.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“This gentleman warmed all of our hearts and was [a] beautiful reminder that we need to keep positive and loving each other,” they said.</span></p> <div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/DelmarCollegeRedDeer/posts/4194304487299910" data-width="500" data-show-text="false"> <blockquote class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore"> <p>Well yesterday something really special happened in our school 💖 Hair Design By Britney had a truly authentic experience...</p> Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DelmarCollegeRedDeer/">Delmar College of Hair &amp; Aesthetics Red Deer</a> on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DelmarCollegeRedDeer/posts/4194304487299910">Friday, April 23, 2021</a></blockquote> </div> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Comments poured in on both posts, with many supporting the man and stylists, as well as recounting other experiences of small acts of kindness between couples.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I had that kind of husband. He used to curl the back of my hair for me regularly because I had surgery on my arm and couldn’t do it well,” one wrote. “He’d also often do his granddaughter’s hair. The love this man and my husband showed is a testament to true love.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Marry a man that will learn to curl your hair when you no longer can … There is some true relationship advice,” another posted.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Heartwarming story from both angles. His wife is so blessed to have him. I had one of those husbands. Thank you for your kindness in teaching him,” a third said.</span></p>

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Ashley Cain bares all after death of baby: “You saved my life”

<p>Former British soccer star Ashley Cain has opened up following the loss of his daughter who passed away from a rare, aggressive cancer.</p> <p>Baby Azaylia died on Saturday, at just eight months old.</p> <p>Cain, a former Coventry City player in England turned reality TV star, documented his baby girl’s short but meaningful life on Instagram.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840923/ashley-cain-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4d1b0ec3cc52451aaf0afd066ba92c99" /></p> <p>Little Azaylia underwent a number of treatments due to her rare form of leukaemia.<span class="CmCaReT" style="display: none;">�</span></p> <p>On Tuesday, the star took to social media to share his heart was “shattered”.</p> <p>“I can’t put into words my sadness and pain, there aren’t words to describe it. I love you with every ounce of my body and I miss you so much already,” he wrote on Instagram.</p> <p>“You made me a better man. You made me the person I’ve always wanted to be. You’ve taught me more in your 8 months than I’ve learned my whole life.</p> <p>“I don’t know why you’ve been taken away from me and my heart aches in your absence.”</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/COFj6fvHzVq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/COFj6fvHzVq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by BEAST 🇻🇨🇬🇧 (@mrashleycain)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Cain said Azaylia’s leukemia had come back in February – not long after they had been given permission to leave the hospital and continue her treatment as an outpatient.</p> <p>The eight-month-old was given just days to live in early April, however she Azaylia battled on as the family made the most of their time together.</p> <p>“You saved my life, you really did. With my second chance, I make a promise to you that I will make yours live on in our hearts, our thoughts and our prayers,” Cain said.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CMzGKv9nmrr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CMzGKv9nmrr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by BEAST 🇻🇨🇬🇧 (@mrashleycain)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>“I am blessed, I am honoured and I am privileged to be your father. I would go through all of the pain again and again. Because what you gave me in those eight months will live with me for eternity.”</p>

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