Obituary, published in The Canberra Times 15 February 2008.

John Charles Richard Morris
Born London, 6 November 1943                                                                                                                                     
Died Canberra, 2 December 2007                                                             

Ten years ago John Morris faced his greatest challenge:   stroke.

It was an event that reshaped his life but it never affected his pride, determination and resilience all of which he applied to furthering the community’s awareness of stroke, stroke survivors and their carers.  A man with a purpose, his campaign was to educate and ensure that governments and the wider community understand that stroke is a major health issue and to dispel the myth that stroke only affects the older person.

As an active committee member of the Stroke Association of the ACT, John was particularly concerned about the younger members of our community who suffered strokes. He said in a National Stroke Foundation video interview that when he had survived his first stroke aged 54 he had lived a fairly full life, but, he added: “We have kids out there in their teens who have had strokes and have not had a chance to build their careers.  We need to care for them.” 

Before he could campaign for others, John had to overcome severe physical disabilities:  a paralysed left arm and the inability to walk.  John’s son Ewan said every day was a challenge both physically and emotionally.  Yet John faced these challenges with determination, humour, pride, stubbornness and passion.  John’s attitude towards recovering from a major stroke made him a stroke survivor, not a stroke victim.

Part of the challenge for John was that he was a self-confessed workaholic and not being able to work was a severe blow.

His 30-year career in the Commonwealth Public Service began in Canberra with the Treasury Department.  He was transferred to Papua New Guinea as a Treasury officer spending time in Port Moresby, Goroka and Kavieng.  It was in Kavieng that he discovered that he also had to be the town undertaker; a duty full of challenges. 

John returned to Canberra to take up a position in the then Department of the Army before joining the Department of Foreign Affairs where he held Consular positions in Spain, the Philippines and in Chile, often having to deal with adverse and difficult situations.

After returning to Australia in 1977 John moved into information technology with government organisations before taking up a position as an IT management consultant in private industry.  When he suffered his first stroke, John had just returned to Australia from the Philippines where he had been working on a major project with PLDT (Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company).

John’s family had been told that he might not survive the stroke but with the love and support of family and friends, and after five months of rehabilitation he was able to walk again, albeit slowly and with care, however he remained paralysed down much of the left hand side of his body. 

Socially he was seen as a ‘disabled’ man and he began to appreciate the difficulties and frustrations that the disabled community face on a daily basis.  He was greatly disappointed by the assumption made by many that a physically disabled person must also be mentally disabled.  As a result of these assumptions many stroke survivors are not able to return to work.

This motivated John to campaign for improved public understanding and perception of stroke survivors. He achieved this as a member of the Stroke Association of the ACT and as a valued supporter and champion for the work of the National Stroke Foundation.  John assisted the Stroke Association to have a voice as a member of the Consumer Health Forum and he also researched stroke recovery treatment. 

Another passion was writing poetry, fiction and recording the many experiences and escapades of his life and career.

Three months before the second stroke that took his life in December, John took part in the National Stroke Foundation “Walk in Our Shoes” campaign at Parliament House to raise Federal MPs’ awareness of stroke and the effect a stroke has on individuals, their families and carers. Together with his wife Anne, John also participated in the ABC Stateline program to promote Carers’ Week and the largely unrecognised role that carers play within the community.

Whenever and wherever John was speaking up for stroke survivors and carers, his wife, Anne, was with him.  They attended conferences and appeared in the media to promote awareness of stroke survivors and carers. 

John is survived by his wife Anne, sons John, James, Piers and Ewan and grandson Marc.  He is greatly missed.

Dr Erin Lalor on Sunrise 

National Stroke Foundation CEO, Dr Erin Lalor appeared on Sunrise on 28 November, 2007 to talk about recognising the signs of stroke using FAST and the result of our Clinical Audit report that found only 3% of eligible patients get the clot-busting drug tPA.

Click here to watch the Sunrise intereview

Walk in our shoes video

Stroke survivor stories

Copies for the media are available by contacting Nicola Edwards, Manager, Mass Media and PR, phone 03 9670 1000 , email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Assoc Prof Chris Levi on todaytonight

The horror of strokes

A stroke generally comes as a bolt out of the blue and can completely change your life. A stroke can hit anyone young or old - it's a killer that doesn't care.

Strokes currently run third behind heart attacks and cancer in the killer stakes but that gap is closing.

Neurologist Dr Chris Levi of the National Stroke Foundation is on a medical mission.

He said: "It knows no boundaries about age, it's more common in people as they get older but it can occur at any age.

"It's a sudden devastating loss of function.

"20 per cent or so of people in the first few months weeks to months after a stroke will die from it. One in five that's an amazing statistic that I don't think many people are aware of.

"Two out of three people over the age of 30 have a risk factor for stroke and a stroke occurs in Australia every eleven minutes."

Paediatrician Dr Christopher Green was a TV doctor and best selling author of books that told us how to tame our toddlers.

But six years ago his glamorous world came crashing down when he suffered a massive stroke, losing mobility and speech.

"I could just say the word Henry and dog and that doesn't do you much good in life," Dr Green said.

"I love dogs but I don't know who Henry is," he added.

In a double whammy Chris's wife died just over three years into his rehabilitation and he could not even give the eulogy at her funeral.

"I spent probably about 3 months of just crying most of the time," he said.

"I had my stroke because I had a heart problem that I didn't know because I didn't do any checks."

So what are the danger signs?

"High blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking and the cardiac condition arterial fibrillation which can cause blood clots to form in the heart and move up to the brain," Dr Levi said.

And he says if you spot any of these symptoms you must act quickly.

"Weakness of the face and arm, that could be the drooping of the face. Weakness of the arm, difficulty with speaking, difficulty with balance, loss of vision, sudden severe headache, or difficulty swallowing"

Anne Maree Ditchfield, 32, had absolutely no warning when her stoke struck.

Anne Maree suffered a clot to the left side her brain which left the mother of three with no mobility and no speech. It has been a battle to come back through physio and lifestyle changes.

"My husband said do you want me to ring the doctor? I said no, so he rang my friend and her husband said it sounds like she's had a stroke, ring an ambulance," Anne Maree said.

"I've now taken up karate which has really helped my co-ordination and movement.

"I was determined to get through it and it's made me a better person now," she added.

Dr Green added: "Those who haven't had strokes.

"Are you people exercising, are you people getting out and doing things, are you looking after your blood pressure? Stop smoking, or you will lose things.

"We don't need other people having strokes."