So, most Xers will remember the song St Elmo’s Fire. Well, that song inspired a Canadian guy, Rick Hansen, to wheel himself around the world in a wheelchair to demonstrate the ability of those with disability.
It’s the 40th anniversary of that song and that worldwide sojourn of Hansen, who became a paraplegic at the age of 15 in a vehicle accident.
So in 1987, I was working in Albury Wodonga, and Hansen came through town on his way from Melbourne to Sydney. He couldn’t go into the radio station for an interview with one of the on-air DJs, as we were on the first floor of a building and there was no lift.
So, I went out to the Hume Highway and met him as he crossed the border from Victoria to NSW and interviewed him. I don’t have the tape or photos, but I do have a memory of huge glove-covered hands and biceps. I guess that happens when you wheelchair your way around the world.
And he’s still doing good for the world with the Rick Hansen Foundation.
Here’s a BBC audio documentary on Hansen and the song.