Year/age

What happened that year

1962

Born on the15^th April 1962 Sue suffered with failure to thrive. She was born underweight though she was fed around the clock Sue was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis on 25^th July 1962.

Sue was put on enzymes, electolites and special oil for cooking (MCT oil) and also antibiotics for next 12 months, which gave her black teeth.

1963

 1

1964

2

On the 16^th of April 1964, her sister Jane was born. The day her sister came home, sue came down with a severe chest infection and was admitted to hospital and treated with antibiotics and physio. This was her first stint in hospital since diagnosis and started on morning and night nebulisers.

1965

 3

1966

4

In 1966 she attended afternoon sessions at Clayton Pre-school, which she enjoyed immensely just being there. Many years latter her pre-school teacher remember Sue for her butterfly like hands, she thought Sue was like a butterfly.

1967

5

In 1967 Sue started half-days at Clayton North Primary School. She was not expected to live to reach her 5^th birthday.

1968

6

1969

7

1970

8

1971

9

1972

10

1973

11

1974

12

1975

13

1976

14

She wrote her first letter to press when she was 14 years old.

1977

15

1978

16

Sue does a Secretarial Course at Stott's Secretarial College at Dandenong.

1979

17

Sue started her HSC at Cleeland High School in Dandenong.

1980

18

Sue finished her HSC.

1981

19

Sue studies Philosophy at Monash University in Clayton. She had to give up studying at Uni due to the smoke barrier becoming larger and the smoke caused exacerbations and her lung infection kept going out of control.

She started oxygen at 19 – she used whenever she slept and used it constantly during exacerbations.

1982

20

1983

21

1984

22

1985

23

1986

24

Sue’s left lung kept collapsing and exposure to tobacco smoke gave her severe asthma attacks that became life threatening from the strain. She had numerous surgical interventions to save her life. She had a pleurodesis to stick her left lung up. Then the right side took up collapsing! Her weight dropped around 34 kilograms. Her doctor told her she was at the point of no return and there was no hope. From his data and his experience, it appeared as such. However, she deeply desired to live.

1987

25

1988

26

1989

27

Sue moved to Adelaide to live an independent self-sufficient life. She decided to live in Adelaide because it had cleaner air than her home in Melbourne.

She met Steven Cavallo and they shared many ideas over many meeting.

She went on a blind date with Shane Sody in December 1989.

1990

28

1991

29

1992

30

Accepted onto the transplant waiting list on Christmas Eve. She returned to SA to clear up loose ends. Her lung was so fragile then, that it collapsed from perfume worn by a person. She had an intercostals catheter put in.

1993

31

Sue does an Open Learning Course (Accounting and Psychology) through Monash University.

1994

32

In May, Sue received the gift of life in the shape of a bi-lateral single lung transplant at the Alfred Hospital.

In October, Sue went to Europe and visited relatives in Portsmouth.

She said, “It was mind-blowing to be able to come here and see them. They were just names and stories you grow up with.”

“I am meeting relatives I have never seen before and it’s wonderful. I have had a lifetime of illness and this is the first time I have been able o come to England.”

“My parents were from here originally so it was fantastic to be able to return to my roots.”

She also traveled to Paris to deliver a paper to the Ninth World Conference on Tobacco & health at this time.”

“Every child I grew up with who had cystic fibrosis has died and parental smoking was a factor in them suffering more and dying sooner.”

Also in October, she discovers that the transplanted Lungs that she has are allergic (asthma) to cigarette smoke.

1995

33

Sue does a bit of study - Economics - at Flinders University

1996

34

Sue does a HETA course in Small Business and also does a course in Certificate Level 4 in Applied Design (Interactive Multimedia) at Torrens Valley Institute of TAFE.

Sue started Intramedia Design at 77a Rose Terrace, Wayville with Brian Wilkins and Ashley Hill. They each earned around $1000 a week at the start.

1997

35

Sue met Aussie Kanck at an Australian Democrats meeting.

In March, Sue became a client of Merlin in relation to Internet access.

Sue took on the job of Newsletter Editor. She took what was basically a double-sided A4 sheet and turned into an 8-page newsletter with high quality graphics. She also established a second in charge for the newsletter (Jill Allen) so that the Newsletter is till produced even though she is no longer working on it.

Sue was keen to get involved in everything. She sat on various A.D. Committees. However she could not go to the numerous Protest Rallies and Marches that the A.D. attended because of her health and the threat of inhaling cigarette smoke.

She would ring around members to try and get them to attend these rallies. Sue was pretty successful.

Sue was also appointed the Federal Campaign Director for the 1988 Federal Election. She also ran as a candidate for the Seat of Adelaide in the State Election.

She was pretty good at organising. She ran workshops to make posters for herself and also for other candidates - she did this from her own home. She also went out and put up election posters at 6.00 am in the morning when there were no cigarette smokers around.

As Campaign Director she attended lots of Committee meetings and telephone hookups for simultaneous release of campaign material.

1998

36

She also volunteered to be Campaign Manager for the Federal Election in 1998 but she wasn't here for a lot of the time because she was in hospital or was interstate.

She started off the Federal Campaign Manager's job in late 1997 with a great deal of enthusiasm but this was nipped in the bud because of her ill health.

Due to the disabilities and problems she had experienced since her asthma attack on the 30^th January.

On the 1^st of February, she walked past cigarette smoke in Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) car park but held her breath! Therefore she didn’t have an asthma attack.

She had a major asthma attack caused by security guard smoking outside of Casualty at 2 am though.

On the 21^st of February, she was discharged from the RAH.

On the 4^th of March, she was readmitted to the RAH - continuing chest infection.

On the 9^th of March, she was discharged from the RAH for home with an iv.

On the 23^rd of March, Sue attends at the Accident and Emergency Department at the RAH - visited Chest Clinic and walked past cigarette smoke.

On the 17^th of July, readmitted to RAH.

On the 28^th of July, she was discharged from RAH.

On the 28^th of August, she had a Bronchoscopy and Endoscopy (Day Procedure) at RAH.

On the 28^th of August, she suffered from Pneumothorax (lung collapse) as result of the Bronchoscopy.

On the 2^nd of September, she told a doctor of her concern of Pneumothorax and was walked out on.

On the 4^th of September she was admission through Thoracic Clinic, Royal Adelaide Hospital

On the 7^th of September she was discharged from Ward S2, Royal Adelaide Hospital and transferred to the Alfred Hospital, Prahran.

She was unable to live independently in her house at Wayville and had to move back to live with her parents at Mount Waverley in Victoria.

1999

37

2000

38

At the time of her death in July 2000 Sue was working on a new awareness campaign ‘Where People Smoke Matters’. Sue saw the problems of passive smoking as a violation of human rights. Her strong belief was that smoking should only take place between consenting adults. Sue was particularly concerned for the vulnerability of children.

“When Sue decided… she could trust n the belief that we would continue her work, she announced to Sue’s mother Irene, that it was time, time for her to die.”

“She said, ‘Anna, you know dying isn’t difficult. In fact it’s rather easy. You will understand when it’s your turn. It is beautiful.”

“Sue asked to be comfortable, reminded us to hold her and gently closed her eyes and drifted peacefully from this world to the next, as always with dignity, grace and a cheeky grin.”

At the 2000 Carols by Candlelight Concert held in Jells Park in the City of Monash, Victoria, Sue’s message was read to the audience of 16,000 and appeared in the program.  It was heartening to find that no one was seen smoking in the audience and that children could breathe easy.