Tim Hammond (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise at a time where almost to the minute five years ago, we lost a great Australian and I must say one of the most inspirational people I have ever met, who I am very proud to call a friend. His name was David Prast. He was 46 years of age. David was a quadriplegic but David was so much more than that. I cannot help but reflect that wherever David might be now, he would be perhaps chortling in some grim irony that I rise to speak on an adjournment debate because, as we saw him transition from this life, I know that wherever he is, he is continuing his great work.

David's story is in some ways unique but shared by so many Australians across this country. On 25 February 1995, David was 29 years of age. He literally—and he would not have minded me saying this—had the world at his feet. It was a balmy Perth afternoon with not a breath of wind and he decided to go down to Cottesloe beach with his then girlfriend, Michelle Lynley. About six pm, just as dusk was setting he thought, 'What a great time for a swim.' The water was calm. After about half an hour in the water, he decided it was time to get out and commence whatever plans they had—they were off to have dinner in Subiaco that night where he lived. He caught the last wave in. David was six-foot seven, a tall man, but a very experienced swimmer. Through the strangest quirk of fate, an accident occurred that was to forever change his life—and in some ways it not only changed his but mine and many others as well. He was unfortunate enough to land on his head and suffer a catastrophic injury. By the age of 29, he was rendered a complete quadriplegic.

From that time, David took himself to a place that I cannot say I have ever really seen to the extent that he lived a life from then until he died that transcended his disability. David became a champion advocate for those who suffered permanent impairment and disability in a way that seemed as if by a curious twist of fate his physical impairment almost unleashed him from, I guess, the constraints of conventional thinking in the way in which he chose to go about tackling traditional paradigms about how we see and, more importantly, how we treat Australians with a disability.

To name but a few of David's achievements during the very short time that he was on this earth, he was able to advocate effectively in Western Australia to create one of the first state government neuro trauma research centres in a way that just made sense. He argued quite persuasively that we should be extracting in Western Australia the proceeds garnered by the state revenue coffers from motor vehicle fines and the like and put them directly into neuro trauma research in order to give us a better understanding of those with spinal cord injuries in a way in which we might be able to make their lives just little bit easier post accident.

He was also a pioneer of stem cell research and was convinced that it held the key to unlock paralysis in a way that it could be cured, to the extent that the Royal Australian College of Physicians named a fellowship after David and that work continues whilst he is no longer on this earth. David also lead the charge in relation to a wonderful program called, funnily enough, Walk On that is now championed by the Spinal Cord Injury Association of Australia—that is, to locate at the time of the traumatic accident certain intensive physical therapies in order to maximise the prospect of those with spinal cord injuries of getting better as quickly as possible and ensuring that they have the best quality of life they could possibly have.

This country will be lucky to find someone who will be such a fierce advocate and able to challenge conventional paradigms in relation to unleashing the potential of those with disability. To finish, I will quote English poet, Christopher Logue, whose words David championed:

Come to the edge.

We might fall.

Come to the edge.

It's too high!

COME TO THE EDGE!

And they came,

And he pushed,

And they flew.

Vale David Prast.