Dad had been living in a nursing home – Tri Care at Point Vernon in Hervey Bay – for the past few years.  Before that, he lived most of his later years in a caravan in Caravan Village in Aspley in Brisbane, Qld – both under the care of my Mum, and then after her passing in 1995, independantly.

We all know that as people get older, they have the occasional fall, so after one of Dad’s falls in his caravan in 2000? the Doctors told him that it was too dangerous for him to live alone anymore, so he needed to go into care.  They gave him the choice of a nursing home or to go and live with my eldest daughter, his eldest Granddaughter, Leah.  (She prefers Lou.)

He took the latter option – Lou wouldn’t have it any other way.  She had been helping to care for both her Nana and Grandad while they lived in the caravan, taking them to buy their groceries and all that sort of stuff while they could, then doing it for them as time went on.

My Dad lived with Lou, and her then partner Jay, and their two girls for a few years.  They lived in the same suburb, a few blocks away from the caravan park.  It was good.  The girls, Cylah and Halle, loved having their Grandad there.

After a time, Lou and her partner separated.  Cylah, their oldest daughter went to live with her Dad.  She was a real Daddy’s girl.  They moved to Maryborough, Qld.    Not too long after, Lou could no longer stand being away from Cylah, so she and her new partner, Halle and Grandad all moved to Maryborough as well.

Dad continued to live with Lou for a few more years, until his care became too much and she had to find somewhere for him that was able to offer the care that she couldn’t.  That is when he moved into Tri Care.