Trouble in Townsville!

[onions]

Dear Board Members,
One of our own has problems. Dez sent me the below privately and I have requested that he allow me to post it to the board...he somewhat reluctantly said yes. With one on the way myself, I had trouble containing my emotions and can only imagine the heartache that he and Olivia must be going through...


Onions,
My wife, Olivia and I spoke with some doctors today about our son Alex that Olivia is pregnamt with. Things are not going well for our Alex.
He has major dramas with his heart. The nornal heart has 4 chambers. Alex has 3 and the 4th chamber is not developed properly and it should well and truely be at this stage. Long and short of it, they are going to give Olivia a c-section to get Alex out. Then before they cut the umbilical cord they need to give Alex open heart surgory before they do so, if they dont, he will die as soon as they cut the cord as his heart will not function.
The public health system wont cover it and our private health cover wont cover it. Private health wont cover Alex untill he takes his first breath. In the private health system the first breath does not start *UNTILL* the umbilical cord has been cut. So, there is a short fall of *many* thousands of dollars to get Alex in to the world as there will be *specialist baby open heart surgeon who has to fly here to us in Townsville to operate on Alex after the c-section.

So I will be putting up an advert for my LT tonight and add pictures asap.

I hope your pregnancy is running much more smooth then ours.

Regards,
Dez

Dez mate, I for one would be more than happy to put my hand in my kick and try to help. Do you have a PayPal account?

I would also be challenging any decision made within the public health sector not to cover you...don't just accept this as a given!

I hope that I might not be the only one to help you guys out...

[jorawro]

Let us know if he gets a pay-pal account set up

[harrowbmw]

Greetings people.

Count me in.
If anyone else would like to assist, perhaps we can contact the original message person and leave some details with them. What do we all say?

Paul Harrington
SA.
corcaigh@internode.on.net

[pcra]

We are currently moving country and will be arriving
in Brisbane on the 5 of july. We don't have money left
to throw in much, but we also do have children.
Tell us how and where and I will make sure that there
will be some cash for you guys.
I am not a member of any religion but our prayers
are with you and your unborn son.
May you be blessed.
Looking forward to read some details here.
AND don't forget to NOT take it as agiven,
that the insurance doesn't pay. The government
certainly has a way to support.
Don't give up.

[DaveDragon]

Let us know and get him to open a PayPal account straight away!

[cws]

Sorry to hear the news Dez, but if he's a typically little Aussie fighter then no doubt young Alex will give it his all.
I'm lucky enough to have 3 grown healthy sons, and will keep an eye on this thread to see how we can help.
Thoughts are with you mate.

[jake]

G'day Dez,
Sorry to hear this news, I however do agree with Ian, Don't give up, nor accept the decsion by private health or hospitals.
I will be happy to put in also, although I will need to wait until I return in August. Keep positive Dez and keep all of us informed, Help is never too far away.

[Dezrae]

Wow.
Guys we have a paypal account already.
But please, keep your money.I know you are wanting to do your bit to help, but i assure you, the many of thousands of dollars Olivia and i need we will only get by selling my K1200LT.
I have photos of it and Olivia is going to put it on ebay in the next few days.

We dont want any money, just your prayers for us and our son Alex would be all we require.

For those of you who are non-religous we would rather you fill your tank up with fuel and go for a long ride and thank your lucky stars its not you.

If you still have a burning desire to do something with your money, donate it to this web site and keep it running.The people, the wealth of knowledge, and the community spirit are amazing.

[pcra]

just your prayers for us and our son Alex would be all we require.

For those of you who are non-religous we would rather you fill your tank up with fuel and go for a long ride and thank your lucky stars its not you.

Non-religious is not non-believer.
Before you send "non-religious" people with a tankful of petrol on the big ride think twice.
I guess this is a stage where all the positiveness that is available is doing good.
Dividing the people, their beliefs, hearts and well meant wishes is unnecessary and I guess you wrote this part because you are in understandably big pain and full of worries at this stage and by sending "non-believers" on the big ride you think you are doing God a favour by eradicating the "non-believers" and therefore He will take care of you and your family? It doesn't work like this. If you listen to your heart you will find God answering you and helping you through this difficult period of time. God's ways are unknown to us. Compassion is what we can live up to. Therefore the people send their wishes and prayers, because they do care. Got the point?
Patrik

[big dog]

G'day Dez

Apologies for responding late, but I was trying to get the right words into my head before I did respond. Mate, as a parent, I can understand the pain and soul searching you are going through. When Jodie (Mrs Dog) was pregnant with our 3rd, she wanted an amnio done because the dr explained something (IMO) not the right way, so she had doubts about the bub. Thankfully, everything turned out okay with the bub and he is now 11 and giving me lots of joy (and grief :) ).

Dez, I'm sending positive thoughts to you and Olivia and your bub. I hope that, like my boy, everything will turn out for the better.

Take care

[onions]

Hi Patrick,
With the greatest respect, I don't believe that Dez's post deserved such a strong reaction. My interpretation of his post being that he was in no way attempting to offend those of religious beliefs or to create any sort of division what so ever, but rather was attempting to graciously declining the generous offers being made by those on the board...and suggesting other options for people to use their money...going on a "long ride" on our K1200LTs being perhaps what the guys on this board enjoy doing most :D

Perhaps you might wish to re-read his post in such a light and perhaps edit your own accordingly?

Regards,

Ian

[cws]

Thank you Ian for sensitively reflecting the thoughts of others...

Dez, may a lotto win drop in your lap and you get to keep both your babies... healthy, wealthy & wise

best
Chris

[dshealey]

Dez, here is hoping the best for your family. I am sure there were a great many of us who would have ponied up for you, as this is likely one of the most generous groups I have ever belonged to when someone is in real need.

I hope the details can be worked out on the "pre-birth" operation so that you are not hit so hard financially. It is a real shame to have to give up the LT, but that can certainly can be temporary, family comes in WAY ahead of our "things". Those can be replaced, family cannot.

Fingers crossed here!

Wow.
Guys we have a paypal account already.
But please, keep your money.I know you are wanting to do your bit to help, but i assure you, the many of thousands of dollars Olivia and i need we will only get by selling my K1200LT.
I have photos of it and Olivia is going to put it on ebay in the next few days.

We dont want any money, just your prayers for us and our son Alex would be all we require.

For those of you who are non-religous we would rather you fill your tank up with fuel and go for a long ride and thank your lucky stars its not you.

If you still have a burning desire to do something with your money, donate it to this web site and keep it running.The people, the wealth of knowledge, and the community spirit are amazing.

[surfran]

Dez,

I'm not good with words for these kinds of situations, but stay strong, and our prayers are with you and your family. If you find a need further down the road for our help with this, please ask as I believe many will help if they can.


Randy

[pcra]

Hi Patrick,
With the greatest respect, I don't believe that Dez's post deserved such a strong reaction. My interpretation of his post being that he was in no way attempting to offend those of religious beliefs or to create any sort of division what so ever, but rather was attempting to graciously declining the generous offers being made by those on the board...and suggesting other options for people to use their money...going on a "long ride" on our K1200LTs being perhaps what the guys on this board enjoy doing most :D

Perhaps you might wish to re-read his post in such a light and perhaps edit your own accordingly?

Regards,

Ian

Hello Ian

You might have read my first post and can see there what my thoughts and intentions are.

It might have come over as a bit harsh what I wrote in my answer to Dez comment regarding sending people on a ride but that is how i feel about it and there is no need to edit my previous post. I did not use any foul language or anything similar whatsoever. I simply expressed myself.

I do not know Dezrae but you know him. So to me is, what he wrote is what i read. And I felt it being quite offensive.

The good wishes stay. If you don't like my opinion, ban me.

Regards
Patrik

[onions]

Hello Ian

You might have read my first post and can see there what my thoughts and intentions are.

It might have come over as a bit harsh what I wrote in my answer to Dez comment regarding sending people on a ride but that is how i feel about it and there is no need to edit my previous post. I did not use any foul language or anything similar whatsoever. I simply expressed myself.

I do not know Dezrae but you know him. So to me is, what he wrote is what i read. And I felt it being quite offensive.

The good wishes stay. If you don't like my opinion, ban me.

Regards
Patrik

Patrik,
Let's just focus upon the issue here, and that is the difficult time that Dez and his wife are going though. It is about us offering our support to them in what ever way we can or think appropriate whilst respecting their decisions.

I'm sure Dez will forgive me for speaking on his behalf when I offer the suggestion that his intention of 'going on a long ride' was not meant to be in anyway offensive. If you have taken it as such, that is indeed unfortunate.

So lets just put this to bed and simply wish them all the best...

No need to discuss banning people...all of us are entitled to have our own opinions...all that I would ask is that we each attempt to read the best into anyone's posts as it can be easy to misinterpret written communications without the luxury of non-verbal communications (ie face-to-face)...:D

No, I don't know Dez personally, only through communicating with him on this board. But hopefully one day I will be able to catch up with both of you personally and buy you both a couple of cool beers whilst we chat about bikes and stuff...:D


Cheers,

[dshealey]

Hello Ian

You might have read my first post and can see there what my thoughts and intentions are.

It might have come over as a bit harsh what I wrote in my answer to Dez comment regarding sending people on a ride but that is how i feel about it and there is no need to edit my previous post. I did not use any foul language or anything similar whatsoever. I simply expressed myself.

I do not know Dezrae but you know him. So to me is, what he wrote is what i read. And I felt it being quite offensive.

The good wishes stay. If you don't like my opinion, ban me.

Regards
Patrik

Sorry, but I think you throughly misinterpreted Dezrae's answer. The rest of us understood that he meant instead of sending him money, donate to the site, or use it for your own enjoyment(the long ride). He certainly did not come off to the rest of us as saying you should "take the long ride" the way you seem to have interpreted it.

Unfortunately, your post was very negative in a thread that had nothing negative in it beyond the initial bad news.

[meese]

Religion has nothing to do with this. Our thoughts and/or prayers are with Dez and his family. If a small financial contribution would help, I'm sure many of us here would be glad to chip in. If Dez feels that taking a moment to reflect and appreciate our own good fortunes while commiserating with the unfortunate troubles of a friend can help, then we'll go that route. I'm sure they will pull through this as a family, regardless of outcome. But having good wishes sent from across the globe sure can't hurt, and is much more important than any simple misinterpretation from an outsider.

[Daza]

Mate,

My thoughts are with you Dez.......

[Dezrae]

Thanks guys for the feedback.

Olivia put the LT up on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110000547527&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:AU:31)today.


We are doing everything we can to come up with alternative solutions.

Ian i would dearly love to take you up on on offer of catching up for a beer or two, same with the rest of you as well.

Im sure could easily talk the leg off a cast iron pot if need be about bikes

[pcra]

Patrik,
Let's just focus upon the issue here, and that is the difficult time that Dez and his wife are going though. It is about us offering our support to them in what ever way we can or think appropriate whilst respecting their decisions.

That's the way I think too.


I'm sure Dez will forgive me for speaking on his behalf when I offer the suggestion that his intention of 'going on a long ride' was not meant to be in anyway offensive. If you have taken it as such, that is indeed unfortunate.

So lets just put this to bed and simply wish them all the best...

I agree on that one. I guess I must have overreacted abit.


No need to discuss banning people...all of us are entitled to have our own opinions...all that I would ask is that we each attempt to read the best into anyone's posts as it can be easy to misinterpret written communications without the luxury of non-verbal communications (ie face-to-face)...:D

Point taken.


No, I don't know Dez personally, only through communicating with him on this board. But hopefully one day I will be able to catch up with both of you personally and buy you both a couple of cool beers whilst we chat about bikes and stuff...:D


I'll buy the beer :)


Unfortunately, your post was very negative in a thread that had nothing negative in it beyond the initial bad news.


I am obviousely not the only one misinterpreting. :D
You didn't read it all did you?


But having good wishes sent from across the globe sure can't hurt, and is much more important than any simple misinterpretation from an outsider.

This is true.


And to end the confusion I started, I say it again as from all my postings; Our best wishes are with you guys.

For causing a heartache because of my misinterpreting and resulting overreaction, I apologize for any offense taken.

Cheers
Patrik

[cws]

Thanks guys for the feedback.

Olivia put the LT up on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110000547527&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:AU:31)today.


hey Dez,
get rid of that silly thing with 4 wheels first... ;)

noticed the tow-ball on the pics, what are/were you towing?
(I'd probably find out if I searched back through your posts, but too lazy (& busy) today...:rolleyes:)

[Dezrae]

hey Dez,
get rid of that silly thing with 4 wheels first... ;)

noticed the tow-ball on the pics, what are/were you towing?
(I'd probably find out if I searched back through your posts, but too lazy (& busy) today...:rolleyes:)


Im towing a Classic trailer. Has about 450 litres of storage in it. Lockable.My dad bought it in 2002 and used to tow it behind his K1200RS and did so when we went round austrlaia in 2002.
Im keeping the trailer.i put a tarp in it and tow it behind my car and fill it with lawn clippings and take it to the dump every now and then.
It has an ice box on the front of the trailer.come in handy on the trip.

[onions]

Devastating news from Townsville,
Our Dez informs me that their son passed away prior to birth...

Really sorry mate, Lena and I, and no doubt the entire LT community, extend our deepest sympathy to Olivia and yourself.

Take care of yourselves,

[cws]

Dez, our sincerest condolences to you and your partner.
Chris & Kerry

[RaffyK]

Terrible news :(

Very sorry to read this. I can understand the pain and surrow that Dez and Olivia are experiencing. We too had the misfortune of a loss prior to birth.

Our thoughts are with them during this difficult time.

[cfell]

Dez and Olivia... my sympathies for your loss. You and Alex are in our prayers... May you be blessed with peace...

[gulfxray]

Dez and Olivia, I & my family send our condolences ... you are in our thoughts and prayers....

[barryst1100]

Dez and Olivia,
Very sorry to hear of your loss.
Our thoughts are with you in this difficult time.

Barry & Karen Lane
Brisbane

[Dezrae]

Wow.
Thank you all for your replys and support.I was not sure how to explain it.I sent Ian a message and explained it in detail and think he did a excellent job of relaying the information.
Olivia and i were both devestated at the chain of events.
Its tough enough when you loose a friend or family member, but when you loose a baby, its really tough cos they didnt even get a chance at life.
you go to bed at night wondering what if, and but maybe's.you wonder what may have become of them later on if given a chance.would they go to university or get a trade.maybe even go and become an astronaut or join a band and tour the world or run their own business.who knows.the sky is not the limit.its just the beginning for these thoughts.
your imagination runs wild as to what they would have looked like as they age. did they have any certain features of you, your eyes, your hair, your nose.What about their personality?did they clap and laugh and go exploring a lot or be very quiet and study things in detail for ages?
so many questions.so little answers.

I hope that if any of you have children you do not have the same misfortune as ours.I would not wish it upon anybody.

Ride safe.
Dez

[BrianD]

Hi Dez
Truely sorry to hear of your loss. Our thoughts are with you and your wife.

[Daza]

Dez, Olivia,

Thinking of you guys, if there is anything I can do just call.

[barryst1100]

Hi Dez & Olivia,

A Buddist teacher once told me that babies who come to this world and then pass away so soon, are the "great masters" sent to teach us about the law of "impermanence".

Sadly life is short for all of us. There is no guarantee of a tomorrow no matter what age we are. So let's at least try and learn from this that we each need to make the most of each day we are given. There is a well worn old saying, yesterday is "history", tomorrow is a "mystery", today is a gift, that's why its called the "present".

A few week ago our Ulysses group did rides for kids at Zoes' Place, which is a respite centre for terminally ill kids and their families. So many wonderful brave kids with such tragic circumstances. We couldn't do much, but we at least brought some big smiles to their little faces despite their personal struggles. It was a privilge to play a small but happy part of these kids lives. Many of them won't be here for Christmas.

Take care Dez and Olivia
We're thinking of you.

Cheers
Barry & Karen
Brisbane

[Dezrae]

A few week ago our Ulysses group did rides for kids at Zoes' Place, which is a respite centre for terminally ill kids and their families. So many wonderful brave kids with such tragic circumstances. We couldn't do much, but we at least brought some big smiles to their little faces despite their personal struggles. It was a privilge to play a small but happy part of these kids lives. Many of them won't be here for Christmas.



I have done rides similar to this with the "Southern Cross".They raise money for kids with Spina bifida. The smiles the kids get go from ear to ear and the feeling you get from doing it is unreplicatable.
We would take the kids for rides on our motorcycles free of charge and really enjoyed it

[pcra]

Hello Dez, it is difficult to find the right words for this. Our condolences and thoughts are with you and your wife. May the future bring sunshine again to your door.
Patrik & Family

[jake]

Dez,

Ive have been away and just read of your loss, Simone and I would like you to know our thoughts are with you both and our deepest sympathy for your lost. I am not to good with words but needed to let you know that we do feel your sorrow.

Jake

[Dezrae]

Hey Guys,
some of you may have noticed i have not dropped in for ages.
hope you have all been safe and well.
sure do miss my LT.In fact any motorcycle to ride would be nice.
since i had a huge whole in my shed from the motorcycle i decided to fill it with something else to help keep my sanity.
i have been working on and built a working M.A.M.E cabinet (http://www.mame.net/) (multiple arcade machine emulator) (lets me play originals games like Pacman, space invaders, double dragon etc)
this helps keeps the kids amused as well as they miss going for rides just as much as i do.
am also in the process of building myself a Jukebox as well. it will be running using sk jukebox software (http://www.skjukebox.com/)
the beauty of it is it will be all free!!
have also been spending more time with Ubuntu Linux (http://www.ubuntu.com/)as well. will be switching all my pc's to Ubuntu in the next few weeks.Cant wait.just have a few lose ends to tie up.

and best of all...

counting down the days till the 16th of July 2007....

My wife Olivia will be in hospital and either be induced or given a c-section to deliver our son. They will not allow her to go to the full 40 weeks as he will be weighing in at about 11 pounds!!!
We have a few names picked out for him, but will decide after we see him. I think with him going full term to be 11 pounds he could almost be a front rower for the Cowboys (http://www.cowboys.com.au/)in a few years time!

will post a few pictures in a few weeks time when our son joins us.

in the mean time, ride safe.

Cheers,
Dez

[Dick]

HEY, DEZ!! Welcome back. Boy, sounds like you're gonna git in some practice on game playin'!!! And definitely gonna be the hit of the neighborhood. Got a quarter slot for the song machine yet??? :D I don't know from nuttin' about Ubunta Linux, butt the way I figger it, you wouldn't be after it if it were less than good. Luck to ya on that project.

Best of everythang to you and the Missus at the hospital. We'll be keeping positive thoughts for you guys. Oh yeah - don't forget to take the camera!!

Great to hear from you, Dez. You've been missed. :thumb:

Best Regards.

[cws]

Wow Dez, what great news!
Will keep fingers crossed for you both that all is good.
Great to hear this, thanks for letting us know!
best wishes

[dave4462]

Hope and pray all goes well we will be in prayer for you all on the 16th DEz and Olive.

[deputy5211]

Welcome back, Dez, and our family will keep you, Olivia, and that 11 pound front rower in our daily prayers. We may be halfway around the world, but we're still family. :cool:

God bless,
Tony

[big dog]

G'day Dez

Long time mate. Hope all goes well for you, Olivia and the family. Happy thoughts heading your way. Mate, he needs to play for a decent team like the Knights..... :rotf:

Take care mate

[barryst1100]

Hi Dez,
Good to hear from you again.
All the best for the 16th, I hope all goes well for you both.

Take care

Barry

[Hilton]

Good on you Dez. Just catching up on the web news as we are on the road. Trust all goes well for you guys. As above, we might be half way around the world, but this place is like family. Cheers Rena and Hilton.

[Daza]

Good luck mate, thinking of you.

Daz and Jen

[jake]

G'day Dez,

Nice to hear your back, Simone and I wish you both the very best and we will certainly be thinking of you and Olivia.

[Dezrae]

Heres some photos of todays events.

We have not decided upon a name for our boy yet, but Mum & bub are going well. he weighs 3.85 kilo (about 8.4 pounds)

both going well...

got to fly

PS.
almost forgot.
if you want the photos got to this web site and download them as a zip file.
about 1.2 meg, so should be fairly quick even for those of you who do not
have broadband
just click up the top left that says "download file" and open the zip file
and the files are in jpeg.
if anyone has any dramas viewing the files let me know
http://s16.quicksharing.com/v/9430860/newborn.zip.html

[cws]

Dez, well done to both of you!
Congratulations, you must be extremely happy!
You were certainly right there for the action shots!!! :D

[Daza]

Top stuff Dez,

Congrats to the both of you.

[Hilton]

Well done Dez. Congrats to all your family, especially Mum as be honest, they do most of the work. :) Enjoy the following years to the full, they soon grow up.

[big dog]

Welcome to the world little one :dance: . Congrats to you and Olivia Dez. Another LT pilot on the planet......

[barryst1100]

Congratulations to you both Dez.

Cheers
Barry