Tania Hayes has dedicated most of her adult life to the full-time care of her husband Warren and her selflessness has put her in the running for a national award.
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The Gwynneville resident was just 22 and looking forward to the wedding of her dreams when her, then fiancee, Warren was diagnosed with a life-threatening brain tumour.
His chances of survival were slim but for the next 16 months Tania remained by his hospital bed, fighting for his right to life even as doctors advised her to switch off his life support.
"He was in a vegetative state and doctors suggested he be sent to an old age nursing home."
After 20 operations, and numerous setbacks, Warren was deemed fit to leave hospital - though he remained paralysed and in need of constant care. But Tania was not about to let him "waste away" in a nursing home.
"He was in a vegetative state and doctors suggested he be sent to an old age nursing home," Mrs Hayes said.
"At that moment I knew there was no way I would allow that to happen and knew I had to take him home and rehabilitate him the best that I could.
"When he came home he was wheelchair bound, unable to eat, talk or move, but we slowly began the process of rehabilitating his life and bringing him back."
It took years of intensive rehabilitation - six days a week, seven hours a day - for Warren to learn to eat and talk again, though he will remain in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
"We got married five years after we brought him home and it was not only a celebration of the love we shared, but how far we had come since Warren was diagnosed with the tumour," Mrs Hayes said.
"We now have a nine-year-old son Josh and we've had so much support from our family and friends who not only help care for Warren, they help care for me."
Mrs Hayes, now 40, has become a strong advocate for carers, and has been an ambassador for Carers Australia for the last nine years.
She's recently been named a NSW finalist for the inaugural National Carer Awards with the state winners to be announced on October 20, and national winners on November 16.
"We've told our story at over 300 different speaking engagements to educate society on the role of a carer," Mrs Hayes said.
"There's 2.7 million carers in Australia who have similar stories to Warren and I. We don't do it for the recognition although it is nice to have the community think of you for an award like this."
Teen carer manages siblings and household
Dapto teenager Mondelle Hogan was highly commended at the 2014 NSW Carer of the Year awards held in Sydney recently.
Minister for the Illawarra and Disability Services John Ajaka congratulated the 17-year-old on her achievement during Carers Week.
‘‘Mondelle cares for her younger siblings, as well as caring for her aunty with a disability and her elderly grandparents while her mother undergoes chemotherapy,’’ Mr Ajaka said.
‘‘She runs the household for her extended family and ensures everyone gets to their doctors’ appointments and takes their medication.
‘‘She manages to balance all of this with her studies and social life.’’
Mr Ajaka said there were more than 857,000 carers in NSW, including more than 100,000 carers under 25 years of age.
Care for a Carer, with simple ideas for how to provide support for carers, was also launched.
