Gerry Griffin

Please meet your new Trust Chairman-Gerry Griffin. You’ll see from this profile that he’s quite   a bloke. With a Court Liaison Chairman, and an ex-school teacher Editor, I think we can look forward to some stimulating times!

1. FULL NAME: Gerard Alfred Griffin.

2. BORN: Melbourne, Vic.

3. MARITAL STATUS: Single.

4. WORKING? Full-time at Telstra, Court Liaison.

5. TYPE, & DATE OF TRANSPLANT: Double-lung; 9th August, 2000.

6. REASON FOR TRANSPLANT? Bronchiectasis.

7. WHERE WERE YOU WHEN THE ‘CALL’ CAME? I slowly became aware of a loud banging on the door of my flat, at 1.15 am. It was my brother Brendan, and he was yelling-”get up, get up!!” I thought something terrible had happened. But apparently Anne Griffiths (Tx recipient Coordinator) had tried-unsuccessfully-phoning me, given up, and called him!! Anne said she had been on the point of contacting the next patient on the waiting-list. With Brendan’s help I made it to the Alfred by 2.00am.

8.MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT OF TRANSPLANT  PROCESS: I have so many memories . In I.C.U the intubation was uncomfortable, as was the incredible thirst afterwards, for some hours only slaked with ice-cubes

9. After a week I was able to walk the ward’s corridors WITHOUT WHEEZING!! A miracle. The resident comedian (Trevor Williams) even quipped “are you sure you’ve actually had the transplant?”, when I said how easy, and natural it now was to breathe. Was I dreaming? On the drive home I was eagerly anticipating how good things would now be.

10. HOBBIES: I have been researching my family’s history over the past two years. I’m now writing stories about some of them. I like early jazz and blues music, and I run and cycle regularly. (Rumour has it that Gerry in fact runs the half-marathon, on the odd occasion! Ed.) 

11. FAVOURITE FOOD; PLACES, ETC: I’m a vegetarian, and I enjoy Italian and Middle-Eastern foods. The Great Ocean Road is a favourite location, as is Lygon Street, Carlton (with you there! Ed.). I also like the Queen Vic Market, and the Aussie bush.

12. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? I took up bicycling after my transplant, and went on increasingly longer and longer rides. Within 12 months I had ridden right around Port Phillip Bay. I decided to top this before my 2nd. Anniversary by riding across the Nullarbor Plains-but couldn’t work out how to get there! Finally I simply talked myself into doing it in reverse, by riding from Perth to Melbourne, in the winter of 2000. Life has been amazing since the transplant, and I want to thank my unknown donor, and everyone at the Alfred Hospital for making it all possible.

(Gerry Griffin.)

 

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