In 2000, quadriplegic farmer Sam Bailey appeared ABC TV‘s Australian Story program for the first time, talking about the car accident that had taken away the use of his legs and how he had still lived his dream of working on the land.
He said:
“It was growing up on the land that I learned a thing called grit.
My family laid a platform for me, all my mates were cheering me on, so I guess I also had a responsibility to kind of give it a crack for them as well.”
The episode is one of the most loved of the long running series. Sam would later learn to ride a four-wheel bike, create a hoist to get into farm machinery and fly ultralight planes. He and his wife Jenny released a book of their life on the land called Head Over Heels in 2006 and became ambassadors of road safely, independent living, farming and giving your dreams a crack despite adversity.
It is the love story of the pair where radio played a role.
Jenny Black was a rural reporter for ABC Radio Tamworth where Sam, on the family farm at Croppa Creek, would listen to her. He set his heart on the woman he met on air, and the result, from that episode of Australian Story, you can watch below.
Sam died unexpectedly on Tuesday September 23, aged 58.
His family said in a statement:
“The response to his death has been overwhelming and a testament to the impact he had on everyone.
Sam was exceptional. He was unique. He was true blue. And he had a genuine interest in all those he met.
Today is a tough day for our family. However, we have been enormously buoyed by the outpouring of love and support.
We will miss him dearly.”
You can listen to Sam’s 2024 ABC Radio National interview about his journey from 19 year old jackaroo prior to his accident to being able to fly, travel the world and live and work on the land here: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/sundayextra/tytmm-sam-bailey/103566364
Sam Bailey image from Facebook.