If you ask Neale Daniher about the bald, brutal reality of living with motor neurone disease (MND), you won’t hear him complain. Apparently he never does, and he’s not inclined to start now. When pressed, though, he describes it as a daily battle.
“You never totally accept it,” says the 58-year-old. “The voice is never far away, saying, ‘You’re f**ked, mate’. One minute you might be able to lift a fork, the next you can’t. You get a little cold and can’t cough, and you feel like you’re drowning.”
At this point, Neale can’t cradle his grandkids in his arms, can’t brush his teeth or sometimes even catch his breath. But this is what he can do: he can jiggle his legs to rock his newborn granddaughter to sleep on his lap; he can share a cracking bottle of red and some laughs with his wife and four kids; and he can raise millions of dollars to fight the incurable disease he has dubbed “The Beast”.
For Neale, it’s the second list that counts – and every day he chooses to dwell on the positive. “I didn’t choose MND,” he says. “My only choice is my attitude and how I deal with it.”
Neale has decided to dedicate the time he has left to finding a cure, and has won admirers all over the country with his courageous, tireless commitment. One of the AFL’s four famous Daniher brothers, Neale played for Essendon in the 1980s, and later coached Melbourne to a grand final – lending his voice to MND research has proved a gamechanger for the cause.
Charity begins at home
Since he co-founded FightMND in 2014, its fundraising tally has topped $40 million – fed by campaigns like the Big Freeze, which sends celebrities into icy water at the MCG every Queen’s Birthday weekend. This year the sale of beanies alone raised $3.2 million.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2019-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2019-Ausgabe von The Australian Women's Weekly.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes - could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
Take me to the river
With a slew of new schedules and excursions to explore, the latest river cruises promise to give you experiences and sights you won’t see on the ocean.
The last act
When family patriarch Tom Edwards passes away, his children must come together to build his coffin in four days, otherwise they will lose their inheritance. Can they put their sibling rivalry aside?
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Jenny Liddle-Bob.Lucy McDonald.Sasha Green - Why don't you know their names?
Indigenous women are being murdered at frightening rates, their deaths often left uninvestigated and widely unreported. Here The Weekly meets families who are battling grief and desperate for solutions.
Growing happiness
Through drought flood and heartbreak, Jenny Jennr's sunflowers bloom with hope, sunshine and joy
"Thank God we make each other laugh"
A shared sense of humour has seen Aussie comedy couple Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall conquer the world. But what does life look like when the cameras go down:
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of Australian apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the midwinter blues away.
Budget dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of low-cost recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.