Special sports, special grandparents, safety, loyalty and multilingual communication

00:32 S1

G'day, I'm Danny de Toro, Australian Paralympic team captain and eight time Paralympian, and you're listening to Leisure Link with Peter Greco on the Vision Australia Radio network.

01:05 S2

It's just gone 5:00, as we say, a very warm welcome to Leisure Link here on Vision Australia Radio 1197 AM in Adelaide. Online at VA Radio Norfolk, VA Radio Digital in Adelaide, VA Radio Digital in Darwin, through the TuneIn radio app or the Community Radio Plus app. Look for Vision Australia, Radio Adelaide, also your favourite podcast or streaming service. And thanks to Australian Disability Media also on their website, Powered media - p o w e r d dot media - and of course our friends listening through 103.9, Hope FM in Esperance in Western Australia. Peter Greco saying It's mighty to be here. Thank you so much for joining us. This program coming to you from Kaurna Land.

Coming to you very, very shortly... We'll speak to Danny de Toro, champion table tennis player just back from Danny's eighth Paralympic Games... we'll also catch up with Ita Buttrose, talk about the importance of keeping fit and healthy, and also avoiding RSV or minimising your chances... will also catch up with Madeleine Ruskin... the Spoony app is now available on the Android platform as well, a safe place for you to go... also catch up with Pam Mitchell, our resident counsellor - loyalty is Pam's topic... we'll speak to Baxter Noonan, just back from a very successful Transplant Games... David Miller will join us from Carers to say it's National Carers Week, look forward to speaking to David... we'll also speak to Molly O'Brien... the Big Day Out for Bedfords is coming up this Friday, your personal invitation is not very far away and Vanessa Paraskevas will join us - Vanessa will talk about Speak My Language... also a chance for you to get involved if English is your second language and you have a disability.

It's always a real pleasure catching up with some of our old favourites. Well, not so much old favourites, but our long time favourites. Danny de Toro is just back from my eighth Paralympic Games. Danny, great to catch up again.

03:09 S1

Oh you too Pete. Thanks for having me mate. I reckon I.

03:11 S2

Said last time we spoke to it. I haven't learnt from that, have I?

03:15 S1

Well good chance and to be fair, you know, like experience, like we... chat a lot. I'm really grateful every time we get to kind of have these little catch-ups. And you're always such a beautiful and wonderful advocate for everyone with a disability, but particularly our athletes with disabilities. So happy to be called whatever you want to call me, mate.

03:33 S2

And happy birthday for the other day.

03:34 S1

Thank you so much. Thanks. It turns out I'm up to level five. This is me at level five, and I have to say, I feel pretty lucky.

03:43 S2

Well, if you're playing cricket, you raise the bat. Yeah.

03:45 S1

That's it.

03:47 S2

How was Paris?

03:47 S1

Oh, Paris was quite amazing. I don't know, you know if you got to catch too much of it.

03:53 S2

But we did, and there was plenty to catch, too. Great.

03:56 S1

Yeah. And I'm glad. I'm glad. Because, you know, that time zone is always a little bit tricky. But for us there on the ground, it was wonderful to have the crowds back. It was wonderful to, you know, be amongst the team without masks. The table tennis was full schedule, so I didn't really get to watch too much of other sports. But we definitely had opportunities to head downstairs with all the, the TVs and, and all the athletes were kind of sitting around watching other athletes... downstairs with, you know, cup of coffee and just hanging out, and they're so beautiful, like, you know, this... community that we've built is a really special one. And every time I get to go to a games, I just I love being around that community. It really... helps provide a lot more motivation within that kind of four year cycle.

04:40 S2

Eight games or your eight game, do you do much reflecting or is it always looking forward?

04:44 S1

Yeah, that's a really good question. I think both is always really important. I mean, you know, reflection helps to kind of with learning and there's always something to learn. You know there's always things that I could have done better or I could have tweaked or, you know, things to kind of start changing for the next cycle. But I definitely think about both really probably at the same time. And, and that really helps keep me on track but keeps me motivated and it keeps me also kind of, I don't know, pushing for the next bit of how I can find a bit more better, a bit more better. Yeah. So yeah.

05:18 S2

Is that what kind of keeps you going?

05:20 S1

Yeah, definitely. I mean, I'm at this point now where sport's good for me on a lot of levels. Like, you know, even if I wasn't making a Paralympic Games, I'd still be down at the local table tennis club hitting balls with the Cobourg mob out there. But sport's good for me. Like as someone with a spinal cord injury, it's really important for me to be... you know, independent and active and healthy as possible. And sport does that, like, you know, kind of high performance sport gives me a bit more of a motivator to kind of get into the gym and do the hours that some people might find kind of really boring or arduous. But for me, it's a great motivator. And, you know, being around community, that's just a good mental health kick, isn't it? Like being around people that are also... motivated and positive. Like that's... a good environment to surround yourself with. And... I get to do that on the daily. So that's what a good life. I feel pretty lucky.

06:13 S2

It's a fantastic message, isn't it? And it's not just for the elite athletes. I mean, kind of any person with a disability or kind of any person full stop could benefit from that physical exercise, and that reflects also on their emotional and mental health as well. 

06:27 S1

Yeah, look I think so. I mean, they they do a lot of study just recently. And... certainly people with disability are the least active in Australia. And that's a worry I think on a lot of levels - like you know, it doesn't, you don't need to be into sport. I think it's just about how to be amongst it, whether it's, you know, taking a push, having a walk, getting out amongst it, doing, doing it with other people, having those conversations, having those connections, getting out of your house in a way that's, you know, good and healthy and safe for you. That's really important and whatever that looks like, I think you've got to find it. You've got to look for it. 

I'm all for, you know, being the change that other people can kind of see. But sometimes you've got to forge your own path, don't you? And you've got to make those things happen if you're not seeing them happen. I think that's as much important part of it as any of it, really.

07:12 S2

And I like it when evidence comes out to kind of prove it. I guess we all like evidence that proves what we're doing is right. But, you know, even things like dementia and helping with the sort of mental agility. That sort of thing is just so important. And because, you know, I mean, people with disabilities have got enough challenges. You don't want to kind of be adding layers to it as we get a little bit older. 

S1

Yeah. That's it. That's the layers isn't it. You know, and I turned 50 yesterday and I'm... getting older and there's definitely more layers that come with age and disability. Like I think that I'm really seeing that, and I'm really seeing the real value of that. And you know, table tennis is a great one, isn't it? You know, I go down to the local club and I'm seeing, you know, 80 year old men, 80 year old women still playing this sport and they're not running as fast. But I can see how a sport like that, that mental agility, that community, that just very active place of mental, physical activity. I see how really beneficial it is for all of them. And I think, great, I've chosen the right sport, Pete, is what that says. It means I can keep doing this until you know at least...

08:13 S2

Another 30 years at least.

08:14 S1

Fingers crossed.

08:16 S2

Again, you talked about the athletes watching other athletes on TV. I know you were obviously in Paris, so I'm not sure how much you caught up with how much we got here, but it was a tremendous amount of coverage. And in terms of the positivity about abilities of people with disabilities, that kind of message that hopefully that kind of keeps resonating.

08:33 S1

Yeah. Good. I feel like if you if that's what you got out of that, then that's really great. I think that's part of it, isn't it? You know, I think it's important to talk about disability because, you know, it's important to get a sense of, you know, how someone is doing what they're doing, especially if you're also someone with a disability and you're trying to figure out how you can be the best version of yourself. But I'm loving how the movement is, is moving more towards, you know, what you're doing and how you're doing it and why you're doing it, rather than getting so caught up in, you know, that kind of I don't know, you know, that disability trope that we're all overcoming something and we're very inspirational, like be inspired by what they're actually doing rather than, you know, that kind of thing that that has kind of led that conversation for so long. 

So, you know, if we're looking at the performance and we're getting excited about that and we're finding people that we want to follow and and we're learning about them and we're motivating ourselves to kind of push ourselves as well, then that's great. And I feel like that's it's taken us a long time, hasn't it? You know, I remember like being number one in the world in wheelchair tennis. And it was... you couldn't see that anywhere. You couldn't say that in it was maybe, I don't know, part of the special interest story in a newspaper somewhere if you looked for it, but it certainly wasn't on the sports pages, and you didn't really get to see it on any of the news or anything like that. 

So I think we've come a long way in the last, you know, 20, 30 years. And I'm really excited. I'm excited for the new athletes that come through that they kind of have this as their platform to really learn and push, learn about themselves as as people and athletes, but also push themselves further in a in a very international way. It's it's very exciting times.

10:12 S2

Paralympic pin, pin project. You've just about caught up with everyone now. 

10:16 S1

Yeah. Thank you so much for all that.

10:17 S2

You got a few inductees in the last month or so, haven't you?

10:21 S1

We certainly did. I think we're now up to, like, 1186 or something. It's... really marvellous. In fact, yeah. We for the first time, we inducted our athletes during the games, and it was incredibly moving, I have to say. Like... it's been a really wonderful program to be a part of, but to then actually have our debutants at a Paralympic Games and to be able to hand them their pin. And for me, the thing that was most moving is how many of our current Paralympians showed up to that day. You know, it wasn't just the first debutants getting their pin that rocked up, it was their teammates and the coaches and the support staff, like there were so many people there and I was really moved by that. Like that says a lot about how we show up for one another and what it means to be an Australian Paralympian, and how we kind of start thinking about the legacy we leave behind. It was it was really quite emotional and very, very wonderful. 

11:17 S2

I was going to ask you about that, because it's part of the chain thing. But also, as you say, going forward, this is going to happen in '28 and '32 and so on and so forth. So, you know, now that everyone has been caught up with you can kind of build build on that. 

11:31 S1

Yeah, that's right. This will keep going long, long after I'm in the ground. But you know we're still at we've still got a lot of people missing. You know we still there's yeah, there's a lot of people whose, you know, contact details we don't have anymore. And so, you know, certainly there's always the lookout for anyone that might be known. But yeah, this is this is a wonderful legacy piece. And and my hope is that, you know, every single Paralympian that gets their pin, it creates that awareness and gratitude for every single person that's gone before them. 

But I'm also, I also hope that when we have our Paralympians who are back home and they're watching on, you know, TV or they're listening or they're kind of getting their experience of a Paralympic Games however they can, that they feel incredible Pride, and they know that they've contributed in such a really meaningful way. That's allowed the athletes now to kind of have the experience that we have.

12:16 S2

We had the great pleasure when the games were on of speaking to Elizabeth Edmondson, who won three gold medals in 1964 at the age of 14. And that was such a cool story. And like, you know, there wasn't much known about her mother was keeping paper clippings from the news, etc., about it. But, you know, 60 years later, it's kind of got to this point. It's a great way to kind of have someone like that that was at the beginning and still be able to kind of share that those memories now 100%.

12:45 S1

Elizabeth is a superstar. You know, Libby Kosmala like there were so many superstars that are still with us. And I'm really grateful that they're seeing the evolution of this. And I hope that they're they're getting to kind of feel the great pride and that real connection to our current athletes as well. For me, that's the important piece. You know, I think back then, Goodness, you know, as you said, like, you know, she came home and then went to school and no one blinked an eyelid, you know. And now, like, you could never do that now. Like now, there's no way that you can avoid being known and being celebrated. And, yeah, you know, Elizabeth is a great example of that kind of full circle where, you know, when we do have pins and we deliver them. You know, Elizabeth is part of that, and she's always the person that we love having around, because it's also a really great reminder for our young athletes. 

You know, I think it's easy to kind of think, oh, this is how it is. And, you know, I just get this and I get that and everything's fine. But I think it's really important that we all keep being reminded that a lot of people work very hard for all of us to get here. And when we come from a place of gratitude with that, then, you know, it keeps us... hungry but also humble. And I think that's that's a really beautiful mix of real grit and determination, but also just a celebration of it all as well.

14:03 S2

Danny, you're a beautiful mix. Thank you so much for joining us. It's always great to catch up. We never have enough time, but I'm sure it won't be too long before we speak again. You take care and congratulations. Eight Paralympics... well, who knows where that number could end?

14:16 S1

Well, you know, Libby Kosmala has got 12. I don't think... anyone in Australia is ever going to do that, but I definitely, you know, I'm on, I'm working towards LA right now and back in the gym. I'm back training, got new coaches, got new people around me. And I'm excited. So giddy up. Let's go.

14:32 S2

All right. Catch up soon, Danny.

14:34 S1

Thanks, Pete.

14:35 S2

Daniela di Toro, they're eight times Paralympic Games, and, well, one of the really wonderful people as far as the Paralympic Games movement go. 

Well, I'm absolutely delighted to welcome to the program Ita Buttrose AC, who has been described as a pioneer in the media industry. I think it's probably underplaying of it. Also recently, chair of the ABC, has been patron of the Macular Diseases Foundation Asia. Thanks so much for your time and lovely to talk to you. 

S3

You too. 

S2

Now, obviously, you do a lot. You've done a lot. Being healthy is part of that message.

15:10 S3

Absolutely. I mean, as we get older, our health becomes the most important thing that we have.

15:15 S2

And you've got... some interesting results of... some, survey regarding people over 60 and perhaps their lack of awareness of the seriousness of RSV. 

15:25 S3

Yeah. So RSV, which is stands for respiratory syncytial virus - which is quite a mouthful, which is why we call it RSV - is a virus that can be quite dangerous for older people. We know it as a childhood disease. But in more recent times it's a serious condition for an older person, say, somebody over 65 who might have other chronic conditions like asthma or heart conditions or a kidney disease, something like that, diabetes. And they could end up in hospital with pneumonia. So that's why we're trying to raise awareness of RSV because because people need to know about it.

16:05 S2

There can actually be fatal, without being too alarmist.

16:08 S3

Well, it can be, yes or no... without being too alarmist. Yeah.

16:11 S2

Okay. You talked about, you know, rather prevalent or more associated with kids, I guess, with something like National Grandparents Day. You know, grandparents like to spend time with their grandkids. Maybe that puts them a bit more at risk in a sense.

16:25 S3

Well, absolutely. So if your grandchild has a cold or a cough or a runny nose, do not hug it. You know, keep your distance, put a mask on. We know how to stop viruses spreading. And the thing about RSV is that the first symptoms are similar to the flu. So you might have a sore throat. You feel generally unwell. But RSV is different from the flu. You feel much sicker now. Most of us have had the flu at some point in our lives. So if you if you get these symptoms cough, cold, you know, runny nose and you feel really, really sick... you should talk to your GP now. 

A friend of mine who's in her 80s, she had about six weeks ago and I asked her what it was like. And she said, well, it started with a hacking cough. And then she said, I felt so unwell that I rang the doctor and he diagnosed RSV. And it took her a while to get over it as well. So it's it can be quite worrying. So older people tend to be stoic and they think, Oh well, it's just a flu. But it may not be just the flu. And don't be stoic, ring your GP or speak to your pharmacist.

17:40 S2

The great point you make about taking time to get over it, because, I mean, I guess none of us like to kind of admit too much that we're getting old. But you know, it does maybe take a little bit longer to get over illnesses the older we get.

17:51 S3

Well, it seems to be that way. I've found the same thing myself.

17:57 S2

Well, what about. are there any vaccines, or are there any sort of preventative things that we can do to avoid getting it all together?

18:04 S3

Well, again, this is a matter for you to discuss with your doctor because everybody is different and your doctor knows your health. And he would know he or she would know if you had other conditions. Of course. Yeah, there is a vaccine, but it doesn't give you lifetime immunity. It will give you immunity for maybe a couple of years, but you can get RSV more than once. So again, it's something you discuss with your doctor and your overall health. The doctor will take into consideration and advise you one way or the other.

18:33 S2

The research that was done. Were you surprised that I think something about 47% of people over 60 weren't really aware of it. That's... quite a significant figure.

18:43 S3

Yes, it is, but I think that's because we we tend not to, we don't talk to older people well enough in Australia. You know, we we tend to think well they're, they're well yes, we are here, but we want to be in good health and I want older people to lead healthy lives, and I want them to be curious, and I want them to ask questions about their health because that's what you should be doing. And it's very important that they put their health first.

19:11 S2

And I guess something like National Grandparents Day kind of, you know, gives us a reason to kind of shine a bit more of a light on it. 

19:18 S3

Yes, well, it is October 27th, which is not far away. And yes, of course, it's a wonderful time to be to remind grandparents that, you know, that often we get illnesses from our grandchildren, beloved though they may be. So don't let them, don't let them kiss you. If mine turn up and I hear them coughing, I say, Don't you come near me. Don't you come near me.

19:42 S2

Yeah, no. Well you got to look out.

19:44 S3

And you, you go back to what we learned during Covid. Wash your hands.

19:49 S2

Because I guess if you look after yourself, well, then you can do your grandparenting duties... you know, longer and better.

19:55 S3

Yes. Well, sometimes we have to look after grandchildren when they're ill. You know. Yeah. Isn't it unbearable that one of your children ring you and say, oh, so-and-so is crook? Could you look after them today? And you think, Well, yes, I suppose I could, but again, put a mask on and wash your hands.

20:14 S2

They're pretty simple things, but pretty powerful things. Yes. What about... seasonally? Does it make much difference? Here we are in October. It's like National Grandparents Day. October 27th. It's the time of the year.

20:27 S3

Yeah, it spreads more rapidly during the colder months, but the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare recently released information that said RSV can be spread throughout the year now. So I think it's become a little more prevalent. I think really with the Covid messages, the other viruses were overlooked. And now and now because we've more or less got Covid under control, I hope the doctors are becoming more concerned about other viruses that might affect older people.

20:58 S2

Obviously, things like eating well and, you know, getting a bit of sunshine, all those sort of eating kind of all know about, they can all help.

21:05 S3

Yes. And doing some exercise. You know, I can't stress the, the importance of physical exercise enough. It's so important as we get older to do something. Please go for a walk 30 minutes every day, something like that, 150 minutes a week. It's walking is free and it's really quite enjoyable. And so you should always try and do something. It's up to us to take responsibility for our health. Nobody else can, you know. So we have to decide how we want to age and what sort of active life we want to lead. If we eat properly and exercise and sleep well, our odds improve.

21:46 S2

And sleep is also very important. As you touched on earlier in the interview about, you know, older people, here we are. Do you think the media can kind of handle that sort of thing a bit better?

21:55 S3

Yes I do. I think they tend to discriminate against older people. I know one newspaper in Melbourne and a journalist rang to pitch a story, a friend of mine, and they said, and it was about somebody well known who's older, and the the response she got was, Oh, we're not really interested in older people. When you think really, really, I mean, everyone's going to get older if they if they're lucky. You have to be lucky to get to be older actually, because not everybody makes it. So you have to be lucky. And all of us, no matter what we all think, all of us are going to get older. 

So it's a question of thinking to yourself, well, how would I wish to be treated when I'm older? I would want to be respected. I would want to feel valued in the community in which I lived. I'd want people to be interested in me.

22:43 S2

It's kind of interesting, isn't it? Because, you know, we're sort of hearing at the moment, particularly with higher interest rates, you know, a lot of older people have maybe almost paid off their homes or paid off their homes. They've probably benefiting if they've got a bit of money in the bank with high interest rates, so they've kind of got dollars to spend. So if you're advertising or if you're marketing, that would be a very good people to be pitching to.

23:05 S3

Well, I don't know about your listeners, but I know as an older person that I'm often helping my my children and my grandchildren. I that's what we do. You know, we do... help them along. And, you know, just because an older person has paid off their house, you shouldn't hold it against them.

23:24 S2

I mean, I know. I wasn't doing that, but...

23:26 S3

I'm not saying you are, but there is a feeling in the community that an older person has paid off. They should move out and give their home to somebody else. Well, only if it suits them.

23:37 S2

Well, they've worked for it, haven't they?

23:38 S3

Yeah, they've you know, it's not easy to buy a house. It's more difficult now I've got a I grant you. But even so it's, it's all relative to what you're earning at the time, and salaries weren't as high as they are now. And, you know, to pay off a home. I remember when I paid off my mortgage, it was the happiest day of my life. I thought, Oh my God, I've done it, I've done it. 

24:03 S2

It's a feeling, I guess... you know, in a broader sense, those sort of things should be celebrated, shouldn't they? It's an achievement rather than, you know, a sort of being a bit envious of it, rather, you know, celebrated or acknowledge it. 

24:14 S3

Absolutely. Of course it should be achieved. I mean, I'm concerned for my grandchildren. I just wonder what they're going to be able to afford when they're adults. Because I never thought I'd see the day where you can't afford to buy a home in Sydney.

24:26 S2

Well, I noticed that the homes in Melbourne are a bit cheaper... information out in the last few days, so maybe that might be an option for people to think about moving to Melbourne. Perish the thought. I'm in Adelaide and I can't bring myself to even think that I get on with Melbourne. I'm sure that we've got a great country and we should be celebrating that for our National Grandparents Day. October the 27th. Let's hope that people can enjoy the day. And also very important to get that message out regarding RSV, and particularly if you've got some symptoms, as you kind of touched on, contact your GP. Absolutely. I had a, great to talk to you. It's been a pleasure. Thank you and wish you well.

25:03 S3

Thank you very much. I've enjoyed our conversation.

25:05 S2

That's all right. But just there. I see you with a very important message regarding National Parents Day and RSV. You're in elite company listening to Leisure Link here on Vision Australia Radio, VA radio, digital VA radio.org. And through the TuneIn radio app.

Well, not so long ago, we caught up with Madeleine Ruskin from Spoony to talk about the app that had been launched. Madeleine said soon it'll be available on Android and is about to deliver. Hello, Maddie. Hi, Peter.

25:37 S4

It's so exciting to be back. Thank you so much for having me.

25:40 S2

It's a pleasure. And you've lived up to your word. 

25:44 S4

I have. We, Spoony has now released on Android, so anyone with an Android device, you get to join the wonderful community at Spoonie. So it's very exciting. We only launched about a week ago, so it's quite new, but there has been so much activity. We have Peter, we have now over 12,000 members of Spoony. 

S2

Fantastic. 

S4

Oh it's exploding. It's so exciting to see.

26:12 S2

Yeah, well, I think we kind of chatted about this last time. I guess it kind of does show that something like this is, is well is needed and certainly people want it.

26:20 S4

Exactly. It's something that the community has really been looking for. And if you haven't tuned in to hear about Spoony before... Spoony is a social platform for disabled, chronically ill and neurodivergent people. And yeah, it's it seems like it's really tapped into a market of people who have been looking for something like this but haven't been able to find a safe space to just be themselves on the internet.

26:45 S2

We mentioned that word before, but safe is so important. So the Android version is pretty much like the iOS version.

26:52 S4

Yes, it's exactly the same, only that it works on Android devices. So you're able... to have all of the different features. You're able to speak with lots of different members. You can change your spoon status, whether you are running low on spoons for the day or you're full of spoons. And we will be adding the symptom tracking feature and also the match feature very soon. So yeah, lots of exciting things on the horizon.

27:22 S2

So this is just the beginning in a sense. 

27:24 S4

It really is. It really is. The party has finally started and yeah, all the guests are here. So we're kicking off. It's very fun.

27:34 S2

And the more and more welcome. What about in terms of, sort of feedback and that sort of thing and I guess a feedback and then be kind of detached in a sense, but then kind of reacting or responding to what the feedback is.

27:46 S4

It's really important to, for us having all of that feedback, and we've had such an amazing community who's so generous with their thoughts and suggestions and feedback. It's really important to us that we because we are building a space for people. It's we're not building, you know, it isn't like the high tech. We are only caring about machines. Not people know we're building this app for the community. So of course we want the community's thoughts on how we can improve what they like, what they don't like. And we do very seriously consider everything that everyone sends us in. And yeah, I think that, well, it's definitely, we operate in a way that I have not seen before, being so open to feedback. It's really refreshing, actually, and I feel like that's one of the reasons why people have been really drawn to Spoony, because they understand that it's different to other apps. 

Some of the really lovely messages we've had, some people have said that like it is life changing for them to be able to have access to Spoony, and it is once again using the safe space. But it's a safe space for people to unmask and be their real selves. Like, that's just straight off the bat. Some of the messages that we receive, and it feels good to know that people are comfortable enough in the space to be able to give us feedback and to help us make Spoony as great as it can be for everyone.

29:24 S2

Well, even enough to feel comfortable enough to say something like that kind of speaks volumes, doesn't it? 

29:29 S4

It really does. People are time poor. They don't want like, I can't imagine sending an email... unless you really, really felt that way. And yeah, we received so many, which is it's, we have an amazing community. It's all the community. So yeah, we're very lucky.

29:47 S2

And that's one of its strengths is the fact that it's, you know, the community that's kind of built it or added to it. So it's not someone sitting in a room and thinking, I know what these people might like. It's actually those people, if you like, are coming together and making it happen. 

30:02 S4

Exactly. You've hit the nail on the head. That is exactly what it's about. Yeah, some people have an idea of apps being very disconnected to the people that they are creating the technology for, and designers just being so disconnected. But at Spoony, it's been like our focus from the very start, the people that were building the app for. So yeah.

30:26 S2

It's very free. It's free.

30:27 S4

It is free and it's always going to be free. And you can hold me to that, Peter.

30:32 S2

All right. We've got that on tape. So yes, in ten or 20 or 30 years time, we might come back and I'm sure you'll keep your word anyway. So it's available now on iOS and Android. I mentioned a couple of times on different interviews in the last week or so that I think in the first half of this year, 56% of phones that were sold were Androids. So they're kind of overwhelming as far as the the numbers go. So it's great that now those people are going to be included in this as well.

30:59 S4

Yes, yes it is. It feels good to be able to make the app as accessible as we can, because, yeah, our users are using Android phones and lots of different devices. So we want to be able to actually get the app to the people who want it. 

31:14 S2

Terrific. Where do we go to get it if we haven't got it already?

31:17 S4

So it is available on the App Store and on Google Play for iPhone and Android users. It's on Google Play as Spoony, s p o o n y, and it should be the first result. So. And we also have a website if you want to check it out, it's Spoony app and you can read about the app and... about the team as well if you're interested.

31:43 S2

Terrific, Maddie, great to catch up. Congratulations to you and all those involved. It's been a well, it hasn't been actually that long from start to now, but it's certainly been a lot of hard work that's gone into it. I hope you get lots of rewards. It sounds like you already are in many different ways, and I'm sure we'll catch up and speak on a semi-regular basis as we go forward.

32:02 S4

Thank you so much, Peter. I really hope so. It's always such a privilege and a joy to speak with you. So thank you so much for having me.

32:11 S2

Oh, you're too kind. That's Madeleine saying the truth. Hey, that's Madeleine Ruskin there from Spoony. So S P O O NY dot app is the website that's dot WP and available now on Android as well as this was before on iOS.

32:28 S5

Hi, I'm Melissa Perrine, four time Winter Olympian, bronze medalist and co-captain, and you're listening to Leisure Link with Peter Greco on the Vision Australia radio network.

32:47 S2

It's that time of the month where we catch up with our resident counsellor, Pam Mitchell is on the line. Pam. Good to hear from you again.

32:54 S6

Good afternoon, Peter. Lovely to have this opportunity to speak with everyone listening in today.

32:59 S2

Now you always choose interesting topics and you always have a unique take. I think this is certainly going to be one that... loyalty.

33:06 S6

Yeah. Loyalty. Look, I've got... you wouldn't believe how many notes I've got here about loyalty. It's... an interesting subject. And what comes to mind. And when we were speaking about it, Peter was just this thread that you mentioned in the... draft picks at the moment in the footy. And, you know, that's one aspect of loyalty, but it's certainly one that's current. And we see players chopping and changing. We see coaches wondering whether they're going to be chopped or changed. And you know, loyalty is an issue in that. And so I'm just going to talk a little bit about that quickly about loyalty within politics. That could take a long time if we got into that. And things in deals, sponsorships, things like that. Yeah, a little bit more in that world. And then probably finishing up in relationships where loyalty is a factor in our relationships we have with friends or, and/or with our partners and loved ones. 

But I just wonder as as we launch into this, I wonder how many people out there have had a situation where they actually feel that they've they've been loyal and then they feel like they've been absolutely duped, doubted, didn't see it coming. Whatever the the thing is, like, from not getting this swing in the playground when you were promised that you were going to be next to being... included in a friendship group and then being told you're not wanted. Being in a sports team, you go out, you've got all your gear on, and then someone says, No, you're not picked... to then, you know, going further up the tree where we're told, possibly without any notice, don't even see it coming, you haven't got a job today in a relationship where out of nowhere you hear that things aren't where you thought they were. The groundswell has moved and you didn't see it coming. And all of a sudden, you're feeling just totally like your life has just changed without you having any control over it. Very many different areas. 

I would just like to share a very quick story with you. Years ago, when my daughter was probably 3 or 4, I was asked whether I would... do a little Mother's Day commercial for the television novel that sells us, and for my daughter to be involved in it, and it was for me to be lying in bed, stretching, and she was running in and jumping on the bed and giving me something for Mother's Day. That's all there was to it. And it was advertising a particular perfume that, of course, she was giving me as a present. So we did that. And at the television station we were told how wonderful and natural it was and how they loved us. And off we went. 

And then we got all the rallies ready, geared up to watch this commercial on this particular day, because it was going to be aired. And in the lead-up to Mother's Day and on came the commercial. Wasn't my daughter and me. They had somebody else they'd obviously seen the same day and recorded and and they were on it. I did ring up and say, what happened about that commercial? And they said, Well, what are you worried about? You got paid. We can choose who we like. It was... an artist. I just felt totally, well, disloyalty to the the t. I felt absolutely gutted that what I thought was going to happen didn't happen. 

And we're caught unaware. And I think loyalty for many of us can happen in that. And that's not like a third grade problem, obviously, what happened to us, but at the time it was a significant thing of disappointment that we didn't recognise when we thought we'd done all the steps and heard all the lovely feedback, only to to feel, well, betrayed, I suppose. Mark Twain, as many people will know, was an American writer. He's described as a humorist, the father of American literature. 

And I didn't know until I started, uh, looking into this that that was a pen name... the person that actually did all the Mark Twain fabulous things was actually called Samuel Langhorne Clemens. And, did this all pseudonym. He, Mark Twain's fame was between 1835 and 1910. And he said, describes loyalty, loyalty to the country, our loyalty to our country, always our loyalty to government when it deserves. I think that's classic. 

We see the changing faces in politics, and we only need to look away off our shore at American politics at the moment, with the Trump and the Kamala Harris, and we and we just think, gosh, out of two people in the whole nation like that and, and the issues that they, they discuss or they don't discuss and, and what it gets into and you think, how do people make decisions around that? You know, how do people remain loyal to a side and then they have disillusionment about it? And how does that change? Lots of factors there in in the way people decide those sorts of things and they're important issues. 

When we look closer on our shores about sport, and we look again at what we started with when we started the segment about the trades, the draft picks we have for the from the players perspective, sometimes their teammates, their coaching staff, etc. will think, well, why is the grass greener on the other side? We thought that you were going to be and play with us. Why all of a sudden? Are you wanting a trade? Why why, why aren't you happy here? Don't see it coming. That loyalty question, after all that's been poured into the drainage. And then that cuts both ways, doesn't it? 

Because the player players are traded, where they even out their permission sometimes. Oh, we're going to sell you off to so and so and so and so. Because then if we put both of you over there, we get who we want from the other side. That also happens, with the coaches. Look at... on tricky ground here, Peter. But we look at... Port during the year, and, you know, everyone thought the coach was wonderful in the beginning of the year, and then he was terrible in the middle of the year. And why will we have that? It was total disloyalty from the board. And there were all these little niggly things going on behind the scenes. And, uh, people were turning against not turning up at the games like they were turning up at the games. And then he gets them back in the finals again and, and it boys upwards and downwards. 

So coaches come and go. Boards can be disloyal about their promises and their commitments. They're saying, Oh no, you'll be with us. You know, we've got a contract till the end of 25 or something. And then all of a sudden there's little whispers around and you think, well, maybe that's not as watertight as we thought it was. We look at business and deals that are broken in business, where we feel that that's that's solid ground that you're, you know, you'll use us, we'll get that contract. And all of a sudden it's cut. We look in the building industry over the past 12 months especially. And just how many people have gone to the wall in there? 

This is a lot to do with money. Of course, how money moves. But people's lives, just one minute they're okay, and the next minute they can't afford to pay their staff. They haven't seen that coming. They lose their homes, financial institutions. How many times are. And this is especially so right now where we read about the farmers' plight, the drought that I don't think any of us that live in this city and suburbs recognised was at such a serious level that it is again this year right now. And, you know, the farmers that are in financial crisis, wondering whether they're loyal to the loyalty to their final financial institution is going to be able to see them through this. Or are they going to lose their properties, their generations of families on the land, their homes, their livelihoods? 

Many of these people will be incredibly stressed right at this moment about that. They can't reap their crops because they're just it's just paddocks of dust. They can't feed their stock. They can't sell their stock because they can't feed their stock. And that loyalty factor, I've been with you for so many years. So as all my family and now you're telling me you're not going to support me anymore, and I... you know, I've got nothing left. Outbidding of lucrative deals. You've been with an organisation, you've had that contract going. It's been watertight. And then all of a sudden someone comes in with some slick thing they can offer you, and there's... Sorry, we can't, you know, thanks for all the support, but, no, we're giving it the contract to somebody else. Really hot. 

In relationships, sudden changes in relationships. We haven't seen that coming. We've thought that we are loyal, trustworthy, honest with each other to the end of the day. And then that is, there's devastation that falls over materially, financially, emotionally, mentally. We just are at a loss and and very upset. So what fosters loyalty? Making time to communicate and speaking up, speaking up about the difficult issues as well as the good ones. How is the groundswell moving? Do we know clearly from both sides as much as we possibly can, so we can work together to to make things work as best they can or to be prepared, working together in teams, on boards, friendships, relationships, being supportive, facing issues, not allowing for a build up of hidden dissent. Hidden messages that are not being asked, not being brave enough to ask. 

And we need to be resilient and robust enough to ask those questions, respecting of ourselves, being loyal to ourselves, knowing what we mean and being able to stick to that and feeling good about that. And then when we can do that, we can be clearer in knowing what our expectations are of our colleagues, teammates, members, partners, having no gossip policies, going for facts and information, making your decisions around that, being clear about your boundaries, being clear with your partners about your values. 

In a workplace, being clear about what is acceptable to you, just not taking a job for the sake of it, and then being really disappointed because you weren't clear. There's accountability factor here that in in growing loyalty, we need to actually be able to attract loyalty by asking those questions, by knowing what's important to us and what the expectation is in return. Performing in the best interests of what binds us together. Being clear about those. Having lots of clarity around that. 

When I work with couples in relationships that come in here just finishing on this, I have five pillars that I believe help people to remain loyal to each other. Each of them are slightly different in context. They're very similar words. I don't think there's a better way that I can help people than by ensuring they're clear about this with themselves and with each other, and it's a great stepping stone towards creating loyalty. And they begin with trust, truth, transparency, honesty and openness and keeping those channels just going over and over again in their discussions. Being brave enough to have those discussions, Recognizing these as our non-negotiables. 

We have these in our relationship and that's our basis. That's our foundation stone of why this works. And I would really love to see them in business and sport and companies and financial institutions, um, people that make deals, sponsors the rest. Wouldn't it be great if we could have those robust discussions and not have a feeling of being betrayed, being doubted, being duped? What a better place it would be to live?

45:41 S2

Pam, that's wonderful and some very useful information right there at the end. I've written all those down, those five things. Pam, you are a counsellor by profession. If people want to come and see you, 0418 835 767.

45:53 S6

Absolutely. Let's come and talk about loyalty.

45:56 S2

We'll catch up next month.

45:57 S6

Look forward to it.

45:59 S2

Pam. Sorry, about this time each month we want to contact Pam. 0418 835 767. Keep in touch. With Vision Australia Radio in Adelaide on 1197 AM.

Well, a few weeks ago we caught up with Becky Noonan, who had an exhibition in the Bedford Sala show. Let's find out how that went and more importantly, what specks have been doing since. Baxter, good to speak to you again.

46:24 S7

G'day, Peter. How are you?

46:25 S2

I'm pretty good. Maybe not as good as you are, but we'll get to that in a second. Now, how did your exhibition go? Where for? 

46:32 S7

Yeah, it all went fantastic in the end. Most people's paintings got sold. And our pieces that we did together, the collaborative ones, they both got sold for over a hundred, so.

46:42 S2

Oh, really?

46:43 S7

Yeah. And now another company called Willow Tree, is like, I think it's a NDIS provider. They're asking us to do some artwork for their new building, so. Yay. Yeah.

46:54 S2

Becoming rich and famous overnight. Yeah, yeah. Oh that's fantastic. Must be nice when your work gets sold. You know, people think enough about it to put their hand in their pocket and actually buy it.

47:05 S7

Yeah, definitely. What was the feedback like?

47:07 S2

I guess all the people involved in the artwork were all pretty excited about it.

47:11 S7

That was very happy. We got to go see it. The exhibition in the city, and we felt all pretty famous that our work was hanging up in David Jones. Yeah.

47:22 S2

Well, well done. Now, since then, you've been pretty busy.

47:25 S7

Yeah, a little bit, yeah.

47:26 S2

Tell us what you've been doing.

47:27 S7

I was involved in the Australian Transplant Games in Canberra.

47:32 S2

And this is your first time, I believe? 

47:34 S7

Yes. I think you have to be one year. We have to get it. Like your doctor has to sign off to say that you're okay to compete. As in my nephrologist. My kidney doctor.

47:42 S2

And you did pretty well, Baxter.

47:44 S7

Yeah, I gave it a crack. I... got gold in badminton, the gold in table tennis singles and gold in table tennis doubles and silver in Vancouver. Petanque. But I call it bocce. But it's, you know, that thing with the bowls? 

48:01 S2

Yeah, yeah. Terrific.

48:02 S7

Yeah, but it wasn't about the competition, it was just meeting other people in similar situations and sharing our stories with people that understand and just yeah, I... my mum unfortunately couldn't come because she got influenza A, a few days before because she was booked in and then I ended up with five different mums from Queensland and grandmas and everyone looking after me, so it was pretty amazing.

48:24 S2

Yeah, of course it's the sort of thing where people have transplants, they're probably on immunosuppressants, so their immune system might not quite be up to scratch. So if anyone's crook, you got to kind of stay away.

48:35 S7

That was definitely what she had intention of. Yes. No-one, no chance of her going back.

48:41 S2

Tell us about your story then. You had a kidney transplant a couple of years ago, I believe.

48:45 S7

Two years ago. September 7th, '22.

48:47 S2

What led up to that?

48:49 S7

Oh, just a lot of my life in general, that I used to not really look after myself, ended in kidney failure. And then I was on dialysis for two years waiting and then received the call.

49:02 S2

What was that like?

49:03 S7

I was out walking that day, actually, and then I got home to about five missed calls from mum and my brother, and I was like, Oh, maybe this is important. So yeah. And then I... drove me, Mum drove straight down and they flew the kidney from Tasmania. And Bob's your uncle. Wow.

49:17 S2

Which hospital did you go to. 

49:19 S7

[?Bang All right], really nice hospital. Really good people, amazing staff.

49:22 S2

They've had a great record for, uh, kidney transplants for many, many years. I can remember doing this program going back. Actually, we spoke about football last time. Tony Clarkson, who was... a very good footballer for Sturt back in the 60s. He was one of the people that was leading that... kidney transplant team. So that's how far back the history goes. 

49:43 S7

Well, with the Transplant Games, it's again next year. There's the World Transplant Games in Germany, and I will see about that because it is expensive with especially with health insurance and all that. Yeah. But then the year after in 26 the rumour is that the Australian Transplant Games will be in Brisbane, so there was a few different categories. My category was someone that's had a transplant or waiting for a transplant. So we got the gold suit, we got to win medals. Then there was a supporters category like family members and friends and also people whose family member has given a transplant or who have. Yeah. So it was all sorts. 

So even mum and dad can come next year and they can do bowls or whatever they feel like they want to do. So it's a very... good thing for everyone. It's very welcoming and amazing. Yeah.

50:32 S2

Very inclusive and also kind of good to recognise the families of those that have donated because it makes it a massive recognition, which is very important.

50:38 S7

Yeah, because without them we wouldn't be there.

50:42 S2

Did you know much about transplants and the sort of you know... ?

50:47 S7

I had no idea. I didn't even know about the Transplant Games until after my kidney transplant. 

50:51 S2

How did you find out about it?

50:52 S7

I just googled it, just came up and then... yeah. So people that are waiting or are in dialysis, maybe it'd be good for them to know that there is, you know, some light at the end when they finally get their transplant. There is something to look forward to as well as, you know what, they're going through. The hard times and the Games are...

51:09 S2

So speak to what was that like? Because I guess you're meeting people with, you know, different organs that have been transplanted.

51:14 S7

Oh my God, so many different amazing stories, like mind-blowing. And there was young kids that have had, you know, heart transplants and they're five, and there's all sorts. And then there's one guy I met who's had his kidney for 50 years. Wow. Yeah. So it was just, it was really, really amazing.

51:31 S2

It must be really cool for someone like you. I mean, you're still young. To think in 50 years time, you could still be living a good life with a kidney transplant. That's got to be a positive thing. 

51:41 S7

Well, I hope so, Peter, because I did... and, you know, stupid Doctor Google. I did read, you know, 15, 20 years. And I thought, Oh, well, I'll probably beat that. So I'll be all right. So yeah, no.

51:51 S2

That's the attitude isn't it. Just because that's what the figures say doesn't mean you have to sort of conform. So that's a fantastic attitude.

51:58 S7

Speaking of not knowing about it as well, I didn't run. I went up and approached the Commissioner of the police, Grant Stevens... Brad Stevens, a lovely man, and I, you know, condoled him and his wife and I told them about the games and they didn't know, and they were very excited. Okay. They can join in. Or he's like the son Talia thing. His mates.

52:17 S2

Oh that's amazing. Yeah. Because, I mean, the Stevens family, you know, I mean, it was a terrible, terrible thing that happened, but they were very public about the fact that Charlie's organs were donated. That's... an emotional and powerful story, isn't it?

52:32 S7

Yeah. So I, I actually met I didn't meet Grant. I just shook his hand a few months ago at the transplant organ donation like awareness day in the city. Yeah. And then I saw him again at the Morphettville on Saturday, and I thought, I'm just going to go talk to him. And they were like, they're not ready yet. But that's definitely something that they want to do. So that was good. Yeah.

52:54 S2

Oh, gee. You're you're an ambassador, aren't you? You're kind of putting the story to people who. And this is one of the things that one of the great things about doing a program like this is you get to speak to people who are doing stuff that you know, that the mainstream media often don't know about, and indeed, the public don't know about. It's such a powerful thing.

53:09 S7

It's a bit, it was... there was, you know, we had a special uniform, like tracksuit. And there was the last night we went to an Irish pub for darts and dinner. It was great fun.

53:20 S2

Yeah, it sounds like too much fun back there. Yeah. Where were the... what about the venues? And that because the Australian Sports Institute is in Canberra, was it?

53:27 S7

Yeah it was the... I, well there was the I like the running track badminton, the swimming. It was amazing. And then things like bowls and table tennis, they're all sort of in different parts of Canberra. So we got to explore it all as well.

53:40 S2

And without being too personal, you kind of have to foot that bill. Like you don't get any of that paid for.

53:46 S7

Oh no, we had to. Well no, we, yeah we had to pay for it. A lot of I think it was Western Australia had a lot of... funding from the government that paid for their transport and allowed them to have catch up meals during the week and things like that. So we are getting together. The South Australian team before Christmas and they're all very positive, lovely people. A lot of young ones and old ones and we are thinking of, yeah, getting together to talk about what we can do in the future.

54:16 S2

Well, if we can help out, I mean, we speak to people like Nat Cook, the Human Services Minister.

54:20 S7

I love her, I met her.

54:22 S2

Yeah, well, you know, maybe if we could just put a little bit of pressure on. I mean, you know, why not get the LIV golf up in 2026. A little bit of money for Transplant Games could be a very good thing to do as well.

54:37 S7

Great idea. I met Nat, last year at the ceremony. We plant a rose for the transplant donors in this awesome park. Yeah. So that'll be coming up again in November, I think.

54:49 S2

Yeah, well, of course, Nat has her own story to sell to you, would go with the Sam? Yeah. Yeah. Beck. Beck. I keep wanting to call you Back. It's a bit shorter, but, Baxter... 

S7

You can call me Beck.

54:58 S2

Okay. All right. All right. Baxter, great to catch up. Thank you so much. Just a big cheerio to your mum for letting us know. And also, I guess after these three golds and the silver medal, you're probably a better athlete than your dad was, aren't you? 

S7

I think so, yeah. Yeah. Well, I think, but. Yeah. Before you go, Peter, after our last chat that night, I ran into Peter [?Goes].

55:19 S2

Oh, yeah.

55:19 S7

And I said, just after he had his cataract. And I said, Oh, g'day, Pete. I was talking to another Peter today and he said that he does some programs for you.

55:26 S2

He does. He does the... program on Mondays here on Australia Radio. I've interviewed Peter about his art. So. Yeah. Yeah, we've got the same initials.

55:34 S7

That's it.

55:35 S2

That's probably where the similarities finish.

55:38 S7

Okay.

55:39 S2

You take care and we'll catch up again. All right.

55:41 S7

Thank you.

55:42 S2

That's it. Baxter. [?Nina]. They want a character. Three gold and a silver from the... Australian Transplant Games. Maybe with a bit of luck going overseas as well. And certainly very important message out there and wonderful at Baxter to be showing the story of people like Grant Stevens too.

55:58 S8

Hi everyone. I'm Alison Davies, I'm a registered music therapist specialising in using music to support our brain to function at its best. You're listening to Leisure Link with Peter Greco on the Vision Australia Radio network.

56:18 S2

What's really important week? Carers week. Let's chat to the CEO for carers in South Australia David Miller. David, always good to talk to you. 

56:27 S9

You know Peter, thanks again for having me on. It's it's always great to chat.

56:30 S2

Oh you're very kind. Well you've had a very big week and a very big day on Thursday. 

56:34 S9

Yeah. Look, it's been a big week. It's... actually started a couple of weeks ago with our Carer Expo that we held out at Brunel East College... where we had over 500 carers come through and 70 per service providers talking to them. That was a sort of the kick-off a couple of weeks beforehand, but our second sort of big event we ran on Thursday was a industry brunch. And so we had a range of people speak. The minister, Nat Cook, Lucy Hood and Heidi Girolamo, both Labor and Liberal members of Parliament who look after or co-chair the parliamentary Friends of Curves group. A couple of partners, Palliative Care SA and and the Central Adelaide Local Health Network, spoke, but everyone sort of came along to hear them, which was great. But Jean Kittson... was sort of our keynote speaker or guest speaker and... she was amazing.

57:22 S2

How many people would know her, a comedian and author? I've been on television, etc.. What's the kind of connection to being a carer as far as Jean goes?

57:30 S9

Yeah, it's it's really interesting. She cared for both her and her mum and her dad... and like happens with carers quite often is that she was a closest family member to both her... mum and her dad and they... lived an hour and a half away. But as she was going through the caring role, she tells it beautifully that... she went, This this process should be easier. Navigating these aged care systems and health systems should be simpler and easier. And then and she actually wrote a book about it. It's a book about how to... look after mum and dad. 

And so her, her parents, she cared for, for... a number of, quite a number of years, passed away, sadly, the... earlier this year both her parents were 99 and 96 I think. So.... they've done really well. But she talks about the the trials and tribulations of being a carer, how she found it completely bamboozling, trying to access service systems, aged care system, the health system, you know. So... that's her connection. And of course she puts that flavour of humour throughout her conversation. So it's yeah really, really good.

58:33 S2

And someone with that kind of clout, that kind of gives the whole message maybe a bit more... sort of connection with the mainstream community, if I can put it that way. 

58:43 S9

Look, it does, it does. Those people like in the... room on Thursday, those who knew of genes are remembered her when she was on TV and yeah, that you could see that they were transfixed because she was, you know, she was a great comedian, is a great comedian. When she was, you know, when she was on TV. So... she gets the message across really authentically because it is her experience. And, you know, when you hear from, as you say, someone who's well known, and someone who is a carer and they tell their story, it's like, Oh, okay... it really does sink in.

59:15 S2

And it says something about the person that they're prepared to speak about it, because I guess, you know, each to their own. But high profile people might want to keep their quote unquote private lives to themselves, but to be public about it and, as you say, to write a book about it, that that kind of speaks volumes for... the person that they are.

59:32 S9

So it does pay their own. And I can say that she's the most genuine, authentic person as well. Wonderful to chat to before and afterwards, really engaging as a speaker when she's telling her story about her caring role, and lots of people were sitting chatting to her before and afterwards. I was fascinating to see her telling her story to to minister Nat Cook, to Lucy Ward and Heidi Girolamo, those members of Parliament who were... at the event. It was a, really it was great. 

And we were... really lucky as well. We had... three wonderful carers, from different... I guess from different times, in their carer roles. So we had a young kid who sat on a panel and answered some questions. So a young carer called Charlie who talked about her experience. She's just about to turn 15. Amazing young lady spoke brilliantly. Lorinda. Loredana, who's, you know, from Italian heritage and talked about her... she's working, talking about her challenges and her caring role. 

And then we had a lady by the name of Becky Llewellyn... whose husband?.... Richard Llewellyn is very, very well known in the, yeah, a very well known couple in the... disability sector. And... she came and spoke about what life was like for her and Richard when Richard was breaking down barriers and doors around inclusion. She was also doing that as well, but experiencing it as... you know, what she experienced when there was nothing around for for carers as well. 

So really a really great mix of... people and that was, getting Becky there was on the back of her sending me her book, that she wrote and... having a conversation about that. So, we got, you know, some really authentic carers telling their story from, you know, quite famous to, from Jane, you know, through to through to a young carer and a couple of other carers, which was really great.

1:01:20 S2

Which I guess kind of speaks to the point about, you know, anyone can be a carer, anyone can be in a position where they may need to be a carer, or indeed choose to be a carer.

1:01:30 S9

Yes, absolutely. And and it was... what you said at the end there, Peter was really right. There were a number of people who said, Look, I, it was actually Becky this morning. She said I chose to be a carer. She said I know lots of people don't have a choice and fall into it or, you know, are forced into a caring role. But she said, Look, I fell in love with the man and I chose to be, chose... and chose to care for him. So it is, it... we had the whole gamut. Today, it's a whole gamut, during the week and speaking to carers. And that's a wonderful thing, is that... we were able to get some good messages out and that happened across the whole week. 

1:02:06 S2

And I guess the sort of thing that, you know, for those that attended that are caring, you know, maybe it just kind of reinforced their spirit, if I can put it that way. Yeah.

1:02:14 S9

Yeah. Look, it did. And we, I went to an event on an event on Wednesday. So we had two I went to Murray Bridge and sat with 60 carers and just had some lunch and just spoke to them and to see the connection and the support that the carers gave each other and that that recognition and of that they're not alone was really, really important. And then we had a Wednesday, late Wednesday afternoon we had a Parliamentary of Friends Carers group, which is co-chaired by Lucy Hawdon, Heidi Girolamo and that was another opportunity that it was great to see government, um, recognise or people within government recognise carers and that's what that's you know, that's what this week is all about. On National Carers Week it's about making sure we recognise those carers in our community and say thank you. 

1:03:02 S2

Yeah, well, we've spoken to Nat Cook many times and Heidi Drive as well, who's a very impressive person. Maybe not as well known, but I think we'll be in the future. And David, have you launched some awards as well? 

1:03:12 S9

Oh look, we've got some... I mean, again, we have the community Achievement Awards, which are I think there's a, oh, it's very close to finishing, but we have a carer achievement award... which is a wonderful thing for, you know, for... carers across South Australia to be nominated for what they've done to contribute to the wellbeing of carers and how they've advocated really strongly for carers last year. And this year is the first... well, this is the second year that we've run a Young Carer award, and it's a fantastic thing because it's not about what the young carers have done for their community, but it's about how have they managed to care and also stay in education, work or training or volunteering. So the challenge of doing that as a young person is, yeah, it is amazing. 

So we've got those two awards, the judged the nominations closed. So they're actually judged in in sort of late November. And the awards ceremony this year is not until February next year. So we're going to have to hold our... you know, hold the powder on that for a little while because it's a long time until the awards ceremony. But... it's again, it's an opportunity for us as an organisation to recognise carers, which is what we're all about now.

1:04:22 S2

Of course, we're talking about unpaid carers. So for people listening, thinking, yeah, I mean I think that's a really important distinction. And something like three million people are in that sort of role. 

1:04:31 S9

Yeah. There are, it's a the new data has come out Peter, so Peterson says there are over three million unpaid carers in South Australia. And we try and make that separation between unpaid carers and paid support workers, which often people call carers. So we... try and keep that and try and separate, have that line down the middle there. But yes it's... really people who are providing support, unpaid support and care to a family member or a friend. And it can be a range of things - anything from, you know, making appointments, going shopping all the way through to personal care. So there's such a wide ranging gamut of what, um, what carers do. 

So... but vital that we support them because, you know, as we are probably said to you every time we chat, in 2019, we did some sums. If we had to replace every carer with a paid person, it would cost nearly $80 billion, which is. And and that's just... it's unfathomable how much that, how much money that is. So... carers are a vital... to the community.

1:05:34 S2

And to make the money spent on the NDIS pale into insignificance, David...

1:05:38 S9

Yeah, yeah. Look. And it does. But but the thing that we try to do, we're trying to do now is that you can't talk about the NDIS, you can't talk about aged care, you can't talk about the health system without talking about carers. Yeah, because carers help sustain those systems by the... things that they do at home, and in their community for the people they care for.

1:06:00 S2

David, you're an excellent advocate for the people that do the unpaid care work. Now, if people want to get in touch with you and particularly well, I guess the week is coming to an end. But as far as the message goes, it's relevant to 365 days all year round, or this year, 366 days being a leap year. How can we find you? How can we get it?

1:06:20 S9

Yeah. So so 1800 422 737 is the best way to get in... touch with us if you want to do it via phone. The other thing is if you type in Carers SA, see into the, into your internet or your phone. Whatever you use, you'll find it pretty quickly and get a whole heap of information about what we do.

1:06:37 S2

And we'll put all that up on our Facebook page as well. David, great to catch up. Thanks so much for giving us a little bit of an insight into what Jean said during the week as well, and I'm sure it won't be too long before we speak again. Fantastic.

1:06:48 S9

Peter, thanks so much.

1:06:49 S2

David Militz there. What a wonderful advocate, a wonderful representative for the work that David does. David is the CEO for Carousel. 

1:07:03 S10

On the Vision Australia Network through your favourite podcast service on 1197 AM in Adelaide, you're listening to Leisure Link.

1:07:09 S2

We'll Bedford's Big Day Out is coming up very soon. Let's chat about it with the event and community engagement specialist from Bedford's, Molly O'Brien. Always good to talk to you, Molly. How are you going? 

1:07:21 S11

Oh, I'm very well. Thank you. Peter, thanks for having me back.

1:07:22 S2

It's a pleasure. Thanks pretty much. Almost all in place.

1:07:26 S11

Oh, yes. Yeah. No, they're coming together. It's... a week away now, so it's getting very exciting. And I know a lot of people have got their outfits ready and they're all looking at the weather. And we're just hoping for a great, beautiful sunny day. Yeah.

1:07:38 S2

So it's certainly been a bit changeable. So we'll we'll have our fingers crossed with you. Now when is it and where is it. So the Bedford.

1:07:44 S11

Big Day out will be held at Bedford Panorama. So that's 615 Goodwood Road, Panorama next Friday, the 25th of October from 3:30 until 7:30 p.m.

1:07:54 S2

OK. What sort of things will be there?

1:07:56 S11

So it's a big community event. It's free and it's inclusive. We're going to have a big stage with apps on all day. We've got performances from wrestlers, dance, theatre, no strings, we've got the Beats crew, DJs from Tutti Arts to get the dance floor started. We've also got other music from musicians, and then we're going to finish the day with a rock band called heatwave. So there's lots of fun things there. We've also got food trucks. There's going to be a market hall with lots of cool things to see and buy, and we're also going to have lots of other activities and surprises on the day. So it's going to be a pretty full packed arvo.

1:08:32 S2

Finishing with Heatwave. That might be a bit of an omen there, Molly.

1:08:35 S11

Uh oh. Let's not say that. Let's not say that. I think we'll close it out with just a bit of fun. Bit of fire on the dance floor, but not not too warm. Not too warm.

1:08:45 S2

Yeah. This is the first time we've held such a day.

1:08:47 S11

Well, there were plans to hold it last year, funnily enough. You mentioned that, but there was one 41 degree day in November, so we actually had to pull the pin the day before. So that's why I'm praying for great weather this year. But it's looking like a 23 degree day, so no heatwaves, only the band this year.

1:09:04 S2

Yeah, well, you certainly deserve a bit of luck with that. Very unlikely to get a day like that in November, so yeah. What about the purpose of a day like this? I mean, apart from it being inclusive and a fun day, kind of a good day just to raise a bit of awareness.

1:09:16 S11

Yeah, absolutely. I think that especially in our for our Bedford community, we just wanted to offer a really cool, inclusive day that is an a day for everyone to celebrate and enjoy and welcome in our surrounding community. Bedford has grown hugely in the last two years, so we've got lots of great things to celebrate. So we thought, why not open it up, open our doors, invite everyone in, come and see the great stuff that we're doing, and also offer something pretty fantastic for our own people too. So yeah, it's kind of just a bit of catch all. Everyone join us. We're just ready to celebrate.

1:09:50 S2

We talked about people like Restless Dance and No Strings. I mean, they do such tremendous work in the community. So I'm sure you had no trouble with them or talking them into coming out?

1:09:59 S11

No, we're really lucky. So we partnered with Restless Dance Theatre for our Bedford Gala earlier this year, and they did a fantastic performance, so we're so excited to have them back as one of the state's top arts companies. Yeah, No Strings are going to be fantastic as well. We booked them last year, but we're excited to see their performance for the first time this year. And I think everyone I know for a fact is looking forward to the beats. Crew DJs, we cannot wait to see that dance floor. Getting started with those guys on stage.

1:10:31 S2

Of course there are no strings attached celebrating 30 years, so they've kind of seen a lot as well. I mean, Bedfords have been around much longer than that, but it kind of goes a bit of a mark of, you know, the respect and the history that organisations like No Strings and Restless have. 

1:10:47 S11

Yeah. I think it's really important to partner with like minded associations around South Australia and I guess Australia nationally and, you know, everyone doing some amazing stuff in the inclusive environment. It's pretty cool.

1:10:58 S2

What about as far as Bedfords now? Like your tentacles, if I can put it that way, you kind of, you know, spread far and wide now aren't you? 

1:11:05 S11

Yeah. So Bedford now have a range of social enterprises. So I think we're really looking to the future of employment for disability especially. So we do everything from cultivate who who do our food and beverage to dovetail, who do advanced manufacturing to green ink, who do landscape gardening and we do a bunch of other things. Blend Creative is inclusive design, and we do a whole range of other things as well. So we're offering lots of opportunities and pathways for people with disability. And yeah, it's just a really exciting time to be a part of Bedford for myself and I think exciting to watch disability opportunities grow nationally. It's really cool that.

1:11:48 S2

Employment opportunity is so important, isn't it? I mean, I know I often say it, but you know, often when you meet someone and you say, What do you do? It's kind of the first question that you get asked. And if you, you know, haven't got a job, kind of the conversation doesn't go anywhere, does it?

1:12:00 S11

No, no. So it's it's cool to, yeah. Be it be a part of the... new world of disability employment. Yeah.

1:12:07 S2

It's fraught as you said. Give us the time. And also do people need to book or can they just rock up and I guess, you know, depending on what time sort of a good time after 3:30. So, yeah, good time to kind of wind down after a week's work and sort of, you know, seeing the weekend.

1:12:21 S11

Yeah. So it's, it's Friday the 25th of October. So there's Friday coming. Bedford, 615 Goodwood Road, Panorama, South Australia, from 3:30 until 7:30 p.m. Rock up any time, but I'd say get there at the start and stay for the whole thing because we've got a lot of cool stuff planned.

1:12:39 S2

And no, no need to book.

1:12:41 S11

No need to book. We'd love you to RSVP if you have the time online. Just so we know that you're coming, but you can just turn up. It's all good. It's a free event. It's for everyone. Everyone's invited.

1:12:51 S2

And it will be catered for. If people are, you know, getting a bit hungry or thirsty.

1:12:54 S11

Yep. There's food trucks, there'll be bars. Everything will be there that you would ever want or need.

1:13:00 S2

All right. Well, that sounds like an offer. Too hard to refuse. All right, now, where people can find out more by going to your website, just.

1:13:06 S11

Head to bedfordgroup.com forward slash BDO and everything will be there.

1:13:12 S2

BDO for Big Day Out. Molly always great to catch up on. Sure it won't be too long before we speak again.

1:13:17 S11

Thank you Peter, have a great day.

1:13:19 S2

That's Molly O'Brien there. Molly is the events and community engagement specialist at Bedford's. That Big Day Out coming up this Friday. We'll put those details up on our Facebook page. 

Let's talk about an organisation we haven't spoken to on this program before: Speak My Language. The national program manager is Vanessa Papastavros, and Vanessa is on the line. Vanessa, hello.

1:13:43 S12

Hello. Thank you for having me today.

1:13:45 S2

It's a pleasure. Tell us a bit about speak my language. Who are you and what do you do?

1:13:49 S12

Absolutely. So Speak My Language is a national initiative that's run by the Ethnic Communities Council of New South Wales, with partners in all states and territories... and our goal is to use radio and podcasts to share stories about living well with a disability in languages other than English. And all of our podcasts, we have over 490 stories at this stage in 25 languages. They share stories of lived experience from people from culturally diverse communities in their languages about what it means to live well with a disability.

1:14:22 S2

Very impressive numbers, Vanessa. I like that. 

1:14:25 S12

I know, it's been about five years running, so we've been able to collect quite a few interviews over that time. 

1:14:30 S2

Terrific. And now you've recently received some extra funding, have you?

1:14:33 S12

That's correct. So we're funded by the department, the Commonwealth Department of Social Services. And they've given us a little bit of an extension, which is exciting. So we can produce a few more video podcasts and interviews that can go out online. So we're thrilled about that.

1:14:47 S2

Now you're going to hopefully tap into some of our listeners experience, and we'll come to that in a second. But I mean, I guess it's a little bit obvious, but what do you kind of hope to achieve from these podcasts and these broadcasts? 

1:15:00 S12

It's a great question. So essentially what we're trying to do is by sharing real experiences and real advice, is change some of the perceptions that might exist out there in our culturally diverse communities. Challenge some of the myths or stereotypes about disability and show what living well really looks like, whether that is people securing employment or further study, whether it's recreational activities, accessing, you know, sports or arts programs, music and so on. 

It's a really broad spectrum of different ways people are living well and the resources they're using to do it. And we've been really fortunate to actually have quite a few people from Vision Australia, uh, either volunteers or just people who are using your services, come on board and share some of their advice in their community languages.

1:15:46 S2

Yeah, there's quite a bit of statistics out there that kind of show that, you know, quite a percentage of the population do use another language other than English at home.

1:15:55 S12

That's right. And in Australia, I think it's coming up to something like half of our population as a parent of migrant ancestry. And it's becoming just a really interesting cohort in that overlapping space between disability and multiculturalism. And we're really trying to address the gap in that intersection because there are so many people who they're either first generation migrants or second generation, they speak a language other than English, and even if they speak English, they have a really unique cultural perspective. So it's wonderful to kind of target that group and give them stories that are sharing their voices and their experiences about what living with a disability in Australia is like.

1:16:34 S2

Very powerful. I guess in any sort of instance, if people are hearing from people who are going through similar things or similar backgrounds, that message has got so much more oomph behind it, hasn't it?

1:16:45 S12

That's 100%. And that's the reason why our program is designed to use storytelling as a way of sharing information, because storytelling is transformative. People who hear stories that are similar to their own often identify with that person's journey and think, well, if that person has been able to find their success story in their work, or by studying or whatever sort of hobby or passion they've pursued, that's something that I can do too. So it's a really powerful way to share information that's relatable and retainable and encourage people to find new avenues, you know, to explore their own passions and interests.

1:17:21 S2

Give us a bit of an idea of what you're looking for, in terms of how our listeners might be able to help out.

1:17:26 S12

Absolutely. Well, as I mentioned, we've previously interviewed quite a few people involved with Vision Australia who've shared information about, you know, having a guide dog accessing services like Telelink or the Vision Australia Library, anything and everything really. And this time around, we're looking at people who speak a language other than English, who'd like to share some information about what living well means to them on video podcasts, so it'll be remotely recorded. You'll get to share a bit of your own perspective or story, and really, you get to choose your topic and you get to choose what the story is about. 

So there's a lot of flexibility there, as long as it's about living well and how other people can kind of use the same opportunities or resources that you yourself have been able to use.

1:18:10 S2

You're kind of saying, you know, tell us about how you live your life rather than asking necessarily people to, you know, not make something up, but rather than you asking them, you want them to share.

1:18:20 S12

Absolutely. We want to give people the opportunity to use their voice and share their story. And everyone's story will look a little different, so long as that focus is about wellbeing in its many, many different facets. Because there are so many different ways people can improve their wellbeing. And you know, it's everything, even from, you know, finding social connections and relationships to exploring passions or hobbies. So it's a really broad spectrum of topics that we've covered.

1:18:46 S2

Now, you read my mind a little bit earlier when I was going to ask you about does it matter where people live? Because we go around Australia on the Australian Radio Network and other networks as well. So, you know, we have a big footprint, as they like to say as far as the radio coverage goes. So it kind of doesn't matter where people live or where people are listening.

1:19:04 S12

That's absolutely right. So we're a national initiative and we are sharing stories from all around Australia. So if you're interested in taking part, whether you live in a main city around Australia or a more regional area, all the recordings happen remotely and we'd love to be able to share those stories no matter where someone is.

1:19:23 S2

Without wishing to sort of specify, I guess, particularly people who might not be in city areas or metropolitan areas, you know, their stories could be quite a little bit different from those that do live in the metropolitan area.

1:19:36 S12

That's correct, because there's obviously different services that they'll avail. And some of the more interesting stories we've shared are people who live in areas that are a bit more regional, and it's so interesting to find out how they have either found resources or services that they can use, or they've helped to create some themselves. Okay. And when you hear stories like that, it really... yeah, it's exciting and it's wonderful to spread the word about those sort of activities or, you know, information where it's happening, especially in regional Australia.

1:20:06 S2

So what are those things? Where? Why doesn't someone do something about this? Oh, I think I'd better do something about this because no one has...

1:20:12 S12

That's it. Right. That's exactly it. You want to be the change? That's right. You'd like to have in the world...

1:20:17 S2

Yeah. That's brilliant. Now, I think you said something like 25 different languages. So are you restricted to that? Or if someone comes along outside those 25, could they be part of this as well?

1:20:28 S12

Not at all restricted. We can include as many languages as possible. At this stage we've got quite a large range, and most of those languages are the more established migrant communities, as you can imagine. You know, speakers from the Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hindi, uh, Vietnamese, Turkish communities. But also we have some really emerging groups as well. So we've had storytellers come on, who are Somali speakers? Nepalese. We've had a few Japanese, French. It's a it's a really mixed bag. And it's not necessarily tied to, you know, the bigger migrant communities in Australia. We're really happy to have anyone on board who'd like to share a story. 

So if you speak a language other than English, really competently or it's actually your first language, that's pretty much all we need is to then just find somebody else who speaks the same language to pay with and to have a chat. So it's yeah, we're really trying to make sure we are as inclusive as possible with the range of languages that we have.

1:21:28 S2

It was a big hit many years ago. Something like what we need is a big melting pot. I think that sounds like what you're tapping into now. What about in terms of disability? Obviously many of our listeners may be blind or have low vision, but you're not restricted to that either. 

1:21:43 S12

That's correct. So obviously our stories up until this point have been via radio and video podcasts. Many of them are targeting people with no or low vision, because obviously that's a really accessible format to get information. But we include disabilities of every kind, not just sensory. So one of the goals for this new video podcast series is that while it can be digested and listened to as an audio format, it's also a video format so that those who prefer that format especially perhaps if they're hard of hearing, they have that option to watch the recording with captioning. 

So we're just trying to make everything as accessible as possible, and to include as many people with as many different disabilities and lived experiences as possible in the program.

1:22:26 S2

You've thought of everything, Vanessa.

1:22:28 S12

We've done our best.

1:22:30 S2

All right, look, this sounds like a wonderful initiative. And congratulations on the extended funding, because, you know, funding isn't granted very easily these days. So if you've been granted that, you must be doing things very well. What's the best way for people to get in touch? How can we find you or how can we get in touch?

1:22:46 S14

Well, one of the best places to start is our website, which is w w w dot speak my language dot com dot AU - where you can not just find our stories, you can find a bit more information about how to get in touch with us, and you can contact myself at the Ethnic Communities Council of New South Wales. The best email would be info at Speak My Language dot com dot AU.

1:23:08 S2

All right, now people want to check out your podcast... we're happy to promote other podcasts. Vanessa. We're not so precious that we can't do that. What do we look for on our podcast platform? What are we looking for?

1:23:18 S14

Wonderful. Well, you can find them on our website via speakmylanguage.com.au ... or you can find us on Spotify as well. Just by searching Speak My Language Disability. So a few options out there.

1:23:29 S2

Simple as that. 

1:23:29 S12

Just yeah, as easy as possible.

1:23:33 S2

All right. Well, the easier things are to find, the more I'm sure they will be made accessible, which is a great thing. Vanessa, that sounds like a wonderful initiative. And I know you've been going for a while, but nice to, quote unquote, "discover" you for the first time. I hope we can speak to you in the future, and let's hope they get people that do good on board, because sharing that lived experience is such a powerful message. 

1:23:53 S12

Absolutely. Thank you again for having me. It's been wonderful to have a chat. And yes, hopefully we'll hear from some listeners soon who might like to participate in our program.

1:24:01 S2

Well, I think that sounds very, very nice. If you'd like to get in touch with them. Vanessa Papastavros, who is the national manager for Speak My Language, sounds like a wonderful idea. Here's hoping you might be able to take advantage of it. 

Club Call, on tomorrow. The Governor, the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel from about 10:30 a.m.. Doors open till about 2:30 in the afternoon. If you want more details. 0408 848 649 give Andrew Kyprianou a call. Good food, great company. Wonderful food. Excellent music. Very accessible. That's tomorrow. Club Call at the Governor Hindmarsh Hotel. Doors open about 10:30 a.m.

A couple of quotes before we go. Newman has sent his quote through. Newman says Feed the ducks while the ducks are quacking. So thanks to Newman for your quote. And Mark, who often picks up on headlines, particularly from the Sydney papers, caught up with this one that he rather liked regarding Anthony Albanese's purchase of that home in Copacabana. Didn't know there was a Copacabana in Australia. I've led a very sheltered life. The headline went Rancho Relaxo. Say thanks to Mark for sending your quote through. Pretty cutting. 

It can be a couple of birthdays before we go. Three, in fact. Eric Horry having a birthday. Tremendous para rower from Australia, spoken very openly about mental health issues. So happy birthday to you Eric. I hope you have a great day. Lani should be having a birthday. Very talented playwright and actor. Hopefully you got something coming up in the French. Lani, we can have a chat to you on the radio about it. And of course, earlier today we spoke to Daniela Di Toro. Dani de Toro also having a birthday during the week. So another happy birthday to you Danny. 

Thank you Sam Rickard for your help. Thank you. Pan green for yours. Reminding you that leash link is available on your favorite podcast platform. If you like the program, please tell a friend. We'd always love one more listener. Or 2 or 3 or 4. Be kind to yourselves. Be thoughtful of others. All being well, Leisure Link back at the same time next week. This is Leisure Link on Vision Australia Radio.