ROB Wynn was 36 and a father to two young children when scans revealed a large, benign tumour on his spine which would ultimately render him a paraplegic.
"I'd complained about certain symptoms for three years and then when it got to the point where I couldn't walk or function and I was sent for an MRI," recalls the now 51-year-old.
"The relief for me was that I could get surgery, because the real trauma was living for those years with no-one listening."
Mr Wynn underwent intense rehabilitation in a Sydney hospital and is able to walk to some degree but relies on a wheelchair.
His recovery journey motivated him to get back to work and to give back to his community: "Most of all I wanted to move on from it. You never totally move on from a spinal injury, it's with you for life, but it gave me the impetus to help others."
For the last decade, the former teacher has worked at Spinal Cord Injuries Australia, beginning as a volunteer in peer support and now employed as its peer and social support manager.
On Thursday, SCIA was one of six charities and community groups in the Hunter (among a total of nine across the nation) which received a slice of more than $770,000 in a funding round from the Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation. The Foundation supports the delivery of projects aimed at improving the health and social wellbeing of vulnerable people across regional NSW.
The latest funding round means the Foundation has now surpassed $25 million in grants since 2003, a milestone which its chair, Jennifer Leslie, said made this round a cause for extra celebration.
"Whilst it is a significant amount of money, what's even more significant is the collective difference it's made in thousands of lives across regional communities over the past two decades," she said.
"We look forward to working closely with these nine partners in 2023 to support their passions and bring their diverse range of projects - which address everything from mental health to domestic and family violence, to youth support and overlooked medical conditions - to fruition to be utilised by those who need them most."
SCIA received $121,000 for its community peer support to improve health and wellbeing for those living wiht spinal injury. The other Hunter funding recipients were Jenny's Place ($127,700 for the Sunshine Hut); Hunter Medical Research Institute ($98,700 for a new treatment for two inflammatory bowel diseases); University of Newcastle ($88,600 for a new treatment for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis); Caring for Our Port Stephens Youth ($50,000 for early intervention youth mental health); and Epilepsy Action Australia ($46,600 for youth peer support)
Mr Wynn said the money received by SCIA would help the organisation, which assists hundreds of people with spinal injuries each year, to grow its face-to-face peer and family support program in the Hunter.
"One of the things we often hear is that clients have a fantastic procedure in Sydney and come back to their community and it's like falling off a cliff - they don't have anyone to talk to, there's no lived experience, they lack the independence and confidence to engage and we want them to regain that," he said.
There are around 400 people with spinal cord injuries in the Hunter, a number that is increasing each year.
"To date, they have had to travel to Sydney for a range of needs, because there are no community peer support services in the region," Mr Wynn said, adding that spinal cord injuries impacted every aspect of a person's life, from physical concerns such as chronic pain through to mental health issues including post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
"This grant of $121,000 ... means we can offer people with spinal cord injuries the necessary support they require - from acute care and rehabilitation through to developing independence at home and in the community - right here in the Hunter," he said.
Mr Wynn counts himself as lucky to have stumbled across SCIA, which encourages those with spinal cord injuries to break boundaries and move forward.
"At the end of the day, it's about thriving with the injury and we want to empower people to live their lives. Peer support is framed really in positives, there's hope and resilience."
WHAT DO YOU THINK? We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Newcastle Herald website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.
