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Huguette IMHOF
12 years ago

I met Nick in Hong Kong in October 1982. By the happiest chance we were staying at the same hotel. As we took the elevator together he suddenly told me something which sounded like: “Hello! Isn’t it a beautiful day?” In fact it was pouring with rain, but the smile that lit his face was gorgeous. And the most incredible was that I had not even noticed that he was in a wheelchair. I had just met a magician! I will keep an unforgettable memory of the few evenings that followed; when he told me his story, talked about his travels and projects, while having our meal together. He loved life so much! And I admired his courage, his greatness. The following year he came to visit me in Switzerland. It was intended that I would come and pick him up at the station, but I suddenly found him there, behind the door, having been able to climb a dozen of steps. This little exercise seemed to have been very easy for him. Another sleight of hand! After a few days he drove to the South of France using a two-rod stick to brake and accelerate… Years have passed. We sometimes wrote each other a post card… and then lost touch. Such is life. Yet I have often thought about him. I have often spoken about him to friends because he was an exceptional being. The other day I had the idea of typing his name on Internet, just in case ... and the sad news was there for me to read. I spent the whole evening remembering the good time we shared together, and lit a candle... I am so happy to have met you, Nick. You can now dance in the light, and even fly, my dear friend! Be blessed for all your kindness, for your courage and the example that you gave us. I know you are still alive in another dimension. Because YOU ARE THE LIFE!

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Ally
12 years ago

Thank you for your lovely words. Nick told me about meeting you and your beautiful silk ink artwork is displayed in our home. Best wishes always. Ally

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Delia Gray
12 years ago

It was the first year of OT. a lecture full of very able bodied young women and the odd bloke! We were waiting on the lecturer, we had never met this guest lecturer before and while waiting, hoping it was going to be good. The lecture theater with sloped aisles filled slowly. We waited. All of a sudden a wheelchair came careering down the left aisle, skidded around at the front of the theatre and crashed throwing it owner across the stage - a huge gasp, shock and before we had a chance to collect our thought he had collected himself and started educating us... what it was really like to live in a chair. How the chair had not stopped him. It was brilliant and such an awesome introduction for beginner OT's. I never forgot it. always recalled it while working with my clients. He finished his lecture with the now iconic picture of Nick hanging from rock while climbing / abseiling with wheelchair suspended below him ( it may have been the three sisters? ). I am grateful to Nick for blowing our minds that day!. Delia ( Graduate from OT Sydney 1997) working in Rehab ever since.

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Deborah Solomon
12 years ago

I met Nick half a dozen times, thanks to my daughter who he scripted a fabulous wheelchair for. He radiated positivity and was modest about his outstanding life accomplishments. In conversation with Nick, it was when he was talking about his family, Allison, Lara and Sasha that you could hear the love, passion and pride. Theirs is an immense loss.

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Amos Gileadi
12 years ago

My late wife, Betty, became wheelchair bound in 1996, and I was looking for a better wheelchair that would allow her to move around and would allow me to move her with less effort than the basic chair I acquired while she was still in hospital. On a rainy Tuesday night, we drove from Rose Bay to Auburn to the old Harvey Norman shopping centre and the precise set of offices of “Dynamic Living Designs”. It was raining cats and dogs and Nick was running a few minutes late. I looked out the door, and saw a Ute park outside the shop. The driver’s door opened and within what appeared to be a split second, a light weight wheel chair was set down on the gravel and a man with a very powerful upper body eased himself into it and came into the shop. Nick looked at Betty and decided what would best suite her needs. We agreed on foam filled tyres, and other nifties. I wrote a check for a substantial deposit and we agreed to come back and pick up the new chair within a few weeks. When we came to pick the chair up, Nick suggested dinner at an Indian Restaurant in Lidcombe, that he knew and we started to listen to his amazing stories of travel and adventure riding on a motor cycle through Siberia (during the Soviet era); how his family moved from Siberia to Bolivia and then to Australia. We heard all about his brother, the Orthodox Priest working in Tasmania, and on and on. I could have listened for many more hours. He told us how he climbed the Three Sisters in Katoomba and how he and Alison climbed a major mountain in Tasmania, before they were married. Betty and Nick became fast friends instantly. Seeing the world from wheel chair height provided a different perspective that only they had. Over the next decade, Nick visited our unit several times; showed pictures of his beautiful wife, Alison, and their very beautiful twin daughters. The more I got to know Nick, the greater became my respect for his courage, vision and achievements. I only recently read, by chance, the obituary column in a recent issue of the Sydney Morning Herald.

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Amos Gileadi
12 years ago

My late wife, Betty, became wheelchair bound in 1996, and I was looking for a better wheelchair that would allow her to move around and would allow me to move her with less effort than the basic chair I acquired while she was still in hospital. On a rainy Tuesday night, we drove from Rose Bay to Auburn to the old Harvey Norman shopping centre and the precise set of offices of “Dynamic Living Designs”. It was raining cats and dogs and Nick was running a few minutes late. I looked out the door, and saw a Ute park outside the shop. The driver’s door opened and within what appeared to be a split second, a light weight wheel chair was set down on the gravel and a man with a very powerful upper body eased himself into it and came into the shop. Nick looked at Betty and decided what would best suite her needs. We agreed on foam filled tyres, and other nifties. I wrote a check for a substantial deposit and we agreed to come back and pick up the new chair within a few weeks. When we came to pick the chair up, Nick suggested dinner at an Indian Restaurant in Lidcombe, that he knew and we started to listen to his amazing stories of travel and adventure riding on a motor cycle through Siberia (during the Soviet era); how his family moved from Siberia to Bolivia and then to Australia. We heard all about his brother, the Orthodox Priest working in Tasmania, and on and on. I could have listened for many more hours. He told us how he climbed the Three Sisters in Katoomba and how he and Alison climbed a major mountain in Tasmania, before they were married. Betty and Nick became fast friends instantly. Seeing the world from wheel chair height provided a different perspective that only they had. Over the next decade, Nick visited our unit several times; showed pictures of his beautiful wife, Alison, and their very beautiful twin daughters. The more I got to know Nick, the greater became my respect for his courage, vision and achievements. I only recently read, by chance, the obituary column in a recent issue of the Sydney Morning Herald.

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Amos Gileadi
12 years ago

Nick was without a doubt, the most impressive man I have ever met. My late wife, Betty, became wheelchair bound in 1996, and I was looking for a better wheelchair that would allow her to move around and would allow me to move her with less effort than the basic chair I acquired while she was still in hospital. On a rainy Tuesday night, we drove from Rose Bay to Auburn to the old Harvey Norman shopping centre and the precise set of offices of “Dynamic Living Designs”. It was raining cats and dogs and Nick was running a few minutes late. I looked out the door, and saw a Ute park outside the shop. The driver’s door opened and within what appeared to be a split second, a light weight wheel chair was set down on the gravel and a man with a very powerful upper body eased himself into it and came into the shop. Nick looked at Betty and decided what would best suite her needs. We agreed on foam filled tyres, and other nifties. I wrote a check for a substantial deposit and we agreed to come back and pick up the new chair within a few weeks. When we came to pick the chair up, Nick suggested dinner at an Indian Restaurant in Lidcombe, that he knew and we started to listen to his amazing stories of travel and adventure riding on a motor cycle through Siberia (during the Soviet era); how his family moved from Siberia to Bolivia and then to Australia. We heard all about his brother, the Orthodox Priest working in Tasmania, and on and on. I could have listened for many more hours. He told us how he climbed the Three Sisters in Katoomba and how he and Alison climbed a major mountain in Tasmania, before they were married. Betty and Nick became fast friends instantly. Seeing the world from wheel chair height provided a different perspective that only they had. Over the next decade, Nick visited our unit several times; showed pictures of his beautiful wife, Alison, and their very beautiful twin daughters. The more I got to know Nick, the greater became my respect for his courage, vision and achievements. I only recently read, by chance, the obituary column in a recent issue of the Sydney Morning Herald. Amos Gileadi ROSE BAY NSW

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Elana Hand
12 years ago

I first met Nick when he came to measure me up for a new wheelchair a few years ago. He had such a bright, happy personality, and always asked me how I was and what I was doing. He had such a generous personality. I am stunned by some of the things Nick achieved in his life. I would never have thought that a multi-skilled athlete could also be a ballet dancer, but it seemed that Nick did it all, not to mention his volunteering work and the businesses he ran or was part of. I remember he once also told me that he was building a new house, another astonishing accomplishment to add to the list. There seemed like there was nothing he couldn’t do. Nick really was an amazing man and I feel lucky to have met him.

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Elana Hand
12 years ago

I first met Nick when he came to measure me up for a new wheelchair a few years ago. He had such a bright, happy personality, and always asked me how I was and what I was doing. He had such a generous personality. I am stunned by some of the things Nick achieved in his life. I would never have thought that a multi-skilled athlete could also be a ballet dancer, but it seemed that Nick did it all, not to mention his volunteering work and the businesses he ran or was part of. I remember he once also told me that he was building a new house, another astonishing accomplishment to add to the list. There seemed like there was nothing he couldn’t do. Nick really was an amazing man and I feel lucky to have met him

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Susie Stoker
12 years ago

Nick was layed to rest at his parents property in Tasmania on Saturday 16th April. He was carried by his mates and family and his brother Father George proformed a beautiful service. I hope now Nick can rest in peace and we can all remember our great times with him. We love you Nick and you will never be forgotten. xx

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Naomi Clarke
12 years ago

Nick scripted the first wheelchair that I could actually push, all others prior were always either too heavy or just not right. Nick gave me the independence and mobility that I just didn't even know was possible. When I heard of Nick's passing my thoughts were of his family and the appreciation and gift he unknowingly gave me. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends. X Naomi Clarke (née Lobert) (Moorong Days)

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Jenny Sparks
12 years ago

Nick, to me, is remembered as a happy, caring person. My special memory is when I took my sister (who can't speak and is in a wheelchair) to a party where Nick made her feel so welcome, and she thought he was just wonderful! I am thinking of you Allison and girls, and wish you well. XXX

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I remember Nick as a gregarious and thoughtful young man He joyfully played with my twins James and Leah and shared his family with us especially making the dim sims. we did not keep in touch over the years but we never forgot that period in our lives Allison and kids we wish you well Teena James and Leah

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