Chance for brighter life
by Alan Welburn
Help needed to keep care option open. Brian Ross, 35, does not remember the moment he was robbed of the life he was meant to lead. But his sister Tash Sharp says the family will never forget.
The one-time marine technician, who was deployed to Iraq, made a stopover in India. At a bar in the western state of Goa, Mr Ross lit a cigar, inhaled and fell head first into an abyss. Someone had spiked the cigar with narcotic china white – methylfentanyl.
So traumatic was the injury done to his brain, Mr Ross is unable to do the simplest things.
He now lives at the newly built Youngcare Share House in Wooloowin, which Ms Sharp said had given him “a new lease on life”.
“He could do nothing, except breathe, at first” she said. “But Brian now lives with young people his own age and is able to attend concerts, family functions with his nephews and social events. He has even started speaking a few words.”
Youngcare spokeswoman Melissa Morrison said Mr Ross was a rarity among thousands of high-care clients, as he was able to move out of aged care. “The reality for these young people living in aged care is sharing a residence where the average age is 84 and the average life expectancy is three years.
In this scenario they don’t get the age-appropriate care they need,” Ms Morrison said. “If people spend a little less on Christmas gifts this year and donate to Youngcare, we can move more people like Brian into better living circumstances.”
Donate today: https://youngcare.com.au/donate/christmas/