Mark Armstrong
Lieutenant Colonel
Commanding Officer
Queensland University Regiment

 

 

Meeting with Geoff Haig 

For those who haven't heard, QURA member Geoff Haig had a fall last year.  I have included a few emails here re Geoff to keep people informed.

 

From: Brian Venz

Subject: Re: Geoff Haig

Date: 12 September 2012 8:46:00 PM AEST

To: Trevor Luttrell

Thanks Trev

 

I went in and saw Geoff Haig, in the PA Spinal Unit, you get to it by veering hard right just before walking into front entrance of the PA.  He is on ground floor ward/Bed 3.

 

He is in fine fettle happy to talk etc.  he has been there since 6 Feb - normally they stay there 6 months but he is now past that.

 

seems it all started with his Rotary - they decided to do a Kokoda trail some years ago and he got all fit and did it.  On getting back he decided to stay fit and used to walk a lot on weekends - plus a few mornings per week.  His morning walk would take him through the Kenmore school oval but as the gate would be locked he would go over the top of it.  After a while he decided to not jump over but to sort of slide over, perching one leg over them his bum and then the other leg and then drop off and go.

 

he had been doing it for over a year and then this time while perched on his bum on the gate, he lost balance and fell backwards and hit his head and neck which made him numb and motionless.  Long story but the Ambos rescued him and off to PA.

 

While in there after a while he started to get DVT in the legs (no leg movements) and a blood clot broke off and got stuck in the brain somewhere.  He is partially paralysed (not fully) on his RHS, but what he really feels is his eyesight in that he has lost the right side vision in both eyes.

 

But what is really messy, is his brain keeps a picture of what is happening on his right hand side (probably from the more distant perspective and that perception of what is there is unreliable and if anything moves into that space after his brain formed a picture thereof  then he gets caught out.  he says he has to really work hard to try and keep a better picture of what's on his RHS - message, when you go see him, stay on his LHS. 

 

He has an electric wheel chair which he operates with his left hand and is quite mobile with respect to what you can do in a wheel chair.

 

Apparently he is retiring this week from Main Roads so will then become a disability pensioner.  He says he will get some assistance/support to make his home a bit more wheel chair friendly, plus he can call on 10 hours per week of Nursing care - he says mainly to assist in morning ablutions and medication etc

 

 I asked about books etc to read, he says reading is difficult for him and slow, but he is not in need.  He has been getting visits from his work, his Rotary, his RSL sub Branch and the bushwalkers he used to go with.  He specifically mentioned Hec MacDonald and Sam Harrison had been to see him.

 

So I would say no pressing need to visit him further in PA, but when he gets home and has been home in Kenmore for say 6 months, it might be worth our while checking up on him.

 

When he asked who had alerted me, I spoke about you and I and the QUR memorabilia.  he said he too has stuff (books papers and other clobber) that will need to be suitably disposed of.  If his stroke should get worse for some reason, then he feels his family will just chuck it in a skip.  But whether he would want it to go to Ginger Beers or the Battalion or QUR (I would have assumed the former).

 

Anyhow thanks for giving me the heads up.

 

and please let me know when you want to go to Walcott Street, if I can be of assistance.

 

cheers

Brian

 

 

From: Trevor Luttrell

Subject: Re: Geoff Haig

Date: 12 September 2012 8:46:00 PM AEST

To: Peter Morton

 

On Sunday 3 February the "Luttrell Brothers" (Denis, Brian and Trevor) visited Geoff Haigh for a cuppa. For those who are not aware all three brothers are graduates of QUR and served with Geoff in the ARES. Additionally Brian worked in the Main Roads Department with Geoff as road engineers Geoff is improving every day and has some movement back in his legs. He has a good range of arm movement although some hand/ finger movements are restricted.

Geoff was in good spirits and is still mentally as sharp as he was. He is back home and is very busy with his the rehabilitation programme.

Geoff with Dennis (left) and Trevor Luttrell	Geoff with Dennis, Trevor and Brian Luttrell

Once again, QURA has lost one of its long time members - Lou Szegedi. 

 

Lou passed away on Thursday 7th February after a long fight against Mesothelioma.  Lou is survived by Wife Mary and sons Michael and Steven. 

 

Lou retired in 2001 and Mary and he moved to acreage at Brooloo which is midway between the villages of Kenilworth and Imbil, approx 45 km south of Gympie.

 

Lou Szegedi will be remembered lovingly by all who were fortunate to serve with him.

 

Eulogy by Peter Keim On behalf of Lou and all of the Szegedi family I wish to offer you all a warm welcome.  Many of you have probably not seen Lou for some time however your presence today is testament to you being in some way touched by this outstanding man’s presence at some time during his life. I have attempted to prepare this eulogy in a style that would be to Lou’s taste. As many of you would know Lou loved humour, detested falsehood and preferred to deal with reality. His positive style of coping served him well in his recent battle with cancer. Lou was born on 3 August 1946 in a refugee camp in occupied Germany after the family’s departure from Hungry. Two years later in 1948 Lou migrated to Australia with his family and settled in Brisbane. Lou and Mary were married in the Presbyterian Church in Kenmore which later became their home suburb for many years. Lou received a very good education at Brisbane Boys Grammar School where it appears his love of military life was developed with 4 years in the Grammar Army Cadets. We know that his army cadet experience was followed later by two years national service with deployment to Vietnam plus an extra 18 months where he served in Malaysia and Singapore. We also know that five years after discharge Lou’s involvement in the Army Reserve commenced which lasted for 15 years and at the age of 47 years retired from the Army Reserve with the rank of Major. Lou’s civilian life commenced in the property industry where he worked for a major development company as an Assistant Project Executive, building high rise office buildings and regional Shopping Centres, while studying for four years, 3 nights a week to become a Registered Property Valuer. Once qualified Lou joined the Public service where he worked for 25 years. He was promoted to Senior Valuer (Executive Level 1). Lou excelled in his valuation role supervising up to 10 valuers and being project manager on occasions for large scale market value assessments of Commonwealth owned properties. Lou also acted as Assistant State Manager of Queensland on occasions as well as a Canberra role as Marketing Assistant to the General Manager. Lou retired from the Commonwealth public service when he turned 55 years. My association with Lou commenced 20 years ago, initially 8 years in the workplace then another 12 years when Lou and Mary decided to have their tree change and purchased a delightful acreage in the same street of my out posted office in Marroo Road, Brooloo. I have great memories of Lou when we both worked together in Brisbane and in his retirement at Brooloo. I feel privileged that he chose to live close to us where we were able to share the trials, tribulations and excitement of rural living although I was at a disadvantage as I still had to work. It was at Lou’s special bush retirement send off at Barumba Dam via Imbil where both Lou and I fell in love with the lovely Mary Valley. Little did we know then that we would soon be living in the same street? Lou as many would know was a perfectionist. He always perused a high quality outcome. As a symptom of this unfortunate affliction the level of research that Lou would put into most things was considerable. While this commendable attention to detail produced valuations of the highest quality it also had its side effects. Working in a mass appraisal environment where the numbers had to be crunched at a fairly rapid rate Lou’s desk often resembled the Berlin Wall. The work files would be packed high and wide and sometimes it was hard to see if Lou was really at work at all. Doubts in that area would soon be resolved with Lou emerging somewhat disgruntled and heading to the lift en-route to the car park floor for another desperate smoke break before returning to his refuge behind the Wall. His regular exits were always well supported with a couple of colleagues joining him to also engage in nicotine therapy. This daily routine would not end at knock off time with another hour or so spent trying to bring overdue work under control. Often he was still at work when everyone else was home breaking bread with their families. To add insult to injury he would take the most critical files home and continue the ongoing drama. It became obvious to me that the quest for perfection coupled with smoking was a very dangerous combination. As well as all his dedicated work commitments Lou had a very well defined social justice conscience and from the work floor was prepared to challenge management if he thought poor policy or unfair outcomes were being planned or delivered. The professional respect he carried both within the operational staff and management was such that Lou had some clout which allowed him to speak out and provide protection for the rank and file. After all the hard yards Lou had put in behind the Berlin Wall he was lucky to make it to his first day of retirement. He had already defied death when he fall off the roof of his house a few years before. I can remember how excited we all were about Lou’s retirement luncheon. A special room had been booked at the Irish Club. After a series of genuine tear jerking speeches especially Lou’s final message we all regained our composure and headed to the bar where the action was fast and furious. Lou as the man of the moment was being plied intermittently by admirers with those potent nasties that come in very small glasses that can be thrown down without seriously interfering with the main action being the main shout. After some considerable time and with Lou still looking the goods his stool received a gentle nudge by one of us and unexpectedly Lou went into free fall and was unable to deal with the forces of gravity. It was a wooded floor and I expected him to rise quickly and resume his seat. After 10 seconds his body remained motionless, then 20, 30, and then the horrible realisation that we had just killed our precious mate without him having one day of retirement. I was totally convinced that the damage done from the earlier fall from the roof had been compounded in this incident and there was no hope. A nurse from the crowd worked on him until the Para-Medics arrived. We told them that he had recently diagnosed with sugar diabetes and after some tests they declared that he had had a diabetic hypo and was totally intoxicated and that other than that he was fine. I was overcome with relief but we were left with the task of convincing a taxi driver that Lou had suffered a severe reaction to some food and we needed to get him home immediately. The unbelievable night ended at Lou’s Kenmore residence with Mary awaiting to receive her husband and I losing my footing and taking Lou myself and Flynny crashing sideways into the scrubs with the mighty Gazza and Avan retrieving our bodies before beating a rapid retreat. Lou’s great passions were the Military and its associated history, Dogs, Fishing and Hunting, Community Involvement and Family but not necessarily in that order. Lou was able to maintain his interest as a part time soldier in the CMF which he valued greatly. Lou’s love of dogs was extraordinary. He had this gentle approach where he would engage in “dog speak” and I am sure the dogs all knew what he was on about as they simply loved him. When Mary and Lou retired to Brooloo they brought with them their two aging dogs Jessie and Stumpy who adjusted quickly from the city life and had a great time with Lou and Mary. When these two beautiful dogs passed on due to old age Lou was devastated. From then on our two Staffordshire bull terriers Bill and Bess became the recipients of Lou’s dog love. They both loved Lou so much that they were beyond themselves with excitement when Lou ever arrived. Lou would let Bill climb all over him and lick him and they would talk to each other with Lou ending up with little scratches on his arms and blood all over the place. Lou never seemed to mind Lou’s love of fishing is legendary. Mention a fishing trip and Lou was first man picked. You didn’t have to ask him. Lou just loved being with his mates and as any fisherman would know fishing is where true mates are made. Our fishing team would remember magic moments on Moreton and Frazer where we saw Lou at his greatest level of fulfilment. He was a hard man to get out of the surf and never recognised that the fish had gone off the bite for the day. If you were fishing next to him it was hard to pull the pin as you would be subjected to ridicule from Lou for not maintaining the faith. Lou’s fishing philosophy was that the longer you stayed in the water the closer you were to them coming on the bite. Often beer or rum was used to entice him from the surf and to reduce the expected flak. He caught more fish than anyone else so I guess he had the last laugh especially when his gear was less than sophisticated with the old battered 6” Alvey and a rod that resembled a museum piece. Lou was always identifiable on the beach dressed neatly in his army camouflage costume complete with giggle hat or beaney. His fishing career ended about 6 weeks ago in magnificent style at a most unlikely spot at the pump hole on our Gympie property on the Mary River. I had planned this event as I knew that time was running out and that the maestro was keen for one more try. I had plenty of worms in my vegetable garden ready to go and I remember how excited Lou was as we dug out this magnificent bait. I drove him down the hill to the river and set him up in a plastic chair and let him loose with his old glass rod. Within two hours Lou had caught 7 good sized fish including Bass and Jew and was in a world of excitement and joy. The fishing Gods had delivered big time and as the sun set and the thirsty flying foxes swooped in along the river for their daily drink in the most idyllic setting I reflected on the most fulfilling day of my life. The photos I have of Lou in action that day will be greatly valued. Lou’s immediate family when he retired became his life. When Lou and Mary came to Brooloo they brought Mary’s aging mother with them. Lou played a big part in helping Mary care for her Mum right up until her death. Lou’s brilliant but irreverent sense of humour often entertained us when he would recall in good humour some of the hilarious predicaments and activities of caring for a Mother in Law with dementure. He loved his boys deeply and cared a lot about them. He was also very proud of their chosen partners Zoey and Sophia who were with him dispensing love and care to the end. Lou and Mary did not waste time when they retired to their acreage at Brooloo. They both joined the volunteer Rural Fire Brigade but found their fitness levels were eventually not adequate when working in the rugged hilly terrain of the Sunshine Coast hinterland. Mary then concentrated on her passion of gardening and transformed their 2 hectare property into the beautiful botanical gardens it is today. Lou on the other hand joined the SES and only recently had to retire, becoming ineffective on disaster callouts due to his worsening health condition. Lou was Vice President and Secretary of the local SES Financial Support Group for many years. He was also Secretary of the Imbil action group and liaised with the Gympie Regional Council for several years. Many of Lou’s friends would not have known that he was a Hoarder of the highest degree. I was astonished when he confessed to having all his school exercise books from grade three up neatly packed in boxes in the shed. It was always a vexing subject with Mary as she was opposed to this level of collection especially when her laundry space had been severely reduced and with this reduced space creating an impossible situation for her to operate properly. The compromise finally came when Lou decided to build a new shed and transfer his treasures there to allow the long suffering washer woman more space. The eventual transfer of Lou’s world possessions was not without incident and towards the end of two days of carting heavy boxes he did his back in and it took him a week to move freely again. I remember back then that there was a minimum of sympathy coming from the lady of the house. In recent weeks when this hording issue was raised again it was disclosed by Mary that Lou still had his “Baby Bonnet”. How disappointed I was that I couldn’t grill him on that one. The sad passing of Lou will ring home when we cease to get his great emails on everything that opened and shut. I thank him for sending me only the appropriate emails and saving me from getting the sack whilst sending the inappropriate emails to other people less vulnerable than myself. Lou especially when his illness made him house bound would send us all, emails every day and it was like he was with us every day. It seemed a little thing back then but now it will sadly reflect his absence. In Conclusion I will miss Lou greatly. He was unassuming and always more concerned about how you were going rather than himself. He was calm, considerate, respectful and kind and when you knew you would be meeting with him there was this degree of excitement that a great time was about to begin. Lou was intelligent but incredibly humble. He had well researched views on issues of importance but loved indulging in irreverent humour which was often spontaneous and hilarious. He could deal easily with all people and was very well respected in the community. When you were Lou’s mate there was a great feeling of privilege and I can imagine what a fine soldier he would have been. Towards the end Lou was an inspiration. He had accepted death but refused to let go of life while it lasted. Lou remained composed and cheerful throughout his ordeal. During that last week in the hospital Lou was aware of our presence and when he would wake up from an induced sleep he would exclaim “your still there, “and a little smile would appear. His continued sense of humour and his maintenance of spirit right to the end was inspiring. There were moments of intense humour when Lou would wake from a deep sleep and make a statement that would create great mirth. One such incident occurred when we were discussing whether Lou might like some ice-cream. The banter started when I was suggesting that we don’t ask Lou as it might take Lou a week of research to decide. A couple of minutes later Lou woke up and opened those large brown eyes and I popped the question. Would you like an ice cream old mate. In a slow and slurred response Lou uttered. “Might have to do some research” followed by a cheeky wry smile. I fed him the little cup of ice cream which he enjoyed and I think that was probably the last food he consumed. Lou had a few signature sayings and pet adjectives. He was always making “executive decisions”. I never met the executive but I reckoned they were very important people. Lou also had this unusual attraction to “colostomy bags”. Often in his spontaneous brilliant humour he would be wearing a “colostomy bag” or some poor unsuspecting person of interest would be wearing a colostomy bag. He even had me on several occasions wearing one of his “colostomy bags”. Lou also described individuals that he considered had little worth as “Oxygen Thief’s”. Towards the end when Lou became dependant on supplementary oxygen supplies from cylinders etc, the wicked question passed my mind, “Should I ask Lou if he had coffed up for his oxygen”. This Eulogy should not be just about the deceased but also about the living. Lou would be disappointed if I was not to mention the role his partner Mary played in his last couple of years. Due to Lou’s decision not to share his predicament with anyone including his family left Mary locked in an exhausting position of having anyone to share her nightmare with. Mary pretty much single handed fulfilled the weekly schedule of keeping house and the constant travelling associated with hospital chemo treatments whilst dealing with the obvious psychological management. She dedicated herself completely to Lou’s daily care and anybody who knows Mary will realise that her care would be of the highest quality, administered with loving detail and tenderness reflecting the wonderful person she is. On behalf of us all “thank you Mary for your dedicated love and care”. I conclude by saying, “Lou thank you for just being youself. Your mateship was greatly appreciated and the lessons in humility, integrity and genuine love that you delivered will not be wasted”. Rest in Peace Lou

 

 

QURA Christmas Drinks - 6th December 2012

The following pictures were taken at the 2012 Christmas Drinks
	Col Ahern chatting to Elona Drain and Judy Costello
Gary Collins on the left, talking to Barry Schmidt who recently returned from Canada
	Rob Byrne (left) having a quiet chat with Peter Morton at the Christmas Drinks function
Donna-Lee Greaves with her son Lawerence (on left) talking to (from the right) Craig Blanch, Niv Debravic and on the far left Michael Bond
	San-Joe Tan on the right talking with Chris Backstrom at the Victory Hotel

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