As the tragic news was announced that Kerri-Anne Kennerley’s husband John had passed away, the Studio 10 host spoke of some of the big challenges he had encountered over the years.
Announcing his passing via Instagram on February 28th, Kerri-Anne wrote: “As you all know, John has faced some tremendous challenges over the past few years and with each he has been extraordinarily brave and determined to overcome those hurdles and live a normal life.
“I want to thank everyone at St Vincent’s Hospital for the beautiful care they have provided to John in his last days.”
And that wasn’t the only time people have shown tremendous generosity and help for the 78-year-old.
In 2017, Kerri-Anne told 9Honey about calling in a local fire brigade in order to help make their Christmas just that little bit easier – and the story is a sweet reminder of the couple’s perseverance and strength.
John with his beloved dog!
Kerri-Anne and John’s world was turned upside down when John suffered a freak fall at a golf resort near Coffs Harbour in 2016, leaving him with quadriplegia. And when a close friend announced that Christmas Eve celebrations would be taking place at their house in 2017, the couple were left wondering how they’d navigate John’s wheelchair into the event.
The beloved showbiz legend told Nine Honey she decided to ask the local fireys to lend a helping hand come Christmas Eve.
“My best girlfriend Elizabeth does Christmas Eve for 30 people and we’re all going,” she told the publication. “We were almost not going because she has four steps which means you need a six metre ramp for John’s chair.”
“Then I thought, we have Woollahra fire station literally behind us so yesterday I went to visit them, and they could not have been more fabulous.”
“I said, ‘I need a fireman to lift John’s wheelchair up four stairs a block a way on Christmas Eve at about 7pm, and then help carrying him down the stairs at approximately 10.30.’ He said, ‘Absolutely, we do these things for the community. Anytime 24/7 you need help with John we’re always here.”
She added: “They’ve always been good blokes.”
In an interview with Sunday Night following his life-changing accident, John said his wife had been an incredible pillar of strength throughout his recovery.
“[Kerri-Anne] is very loving and she has been the strength of my whole recovery,” John explained late last year. “Without her I don’t think I would have attempted it but, as I say, she was there when I woke up and she has been with me every day.”
He added: “It is really, really been hard… I have appreciated it, she never faltered. Never faltered.”
WATCH: John speaks about his accident. Post continues after the video…
KAK has also opened up about her husband and the accident that changed their lives forever.
“He’s just a remarkable person. He’s unbelievable! He can run a power chair forward he can’t reverse so he can’t push a button, turn a page or feed himself,” she recently said on the Kyle and Jackie O Show.
“So it’s 24-hour care but he’s lucky he’s not ventilated so he can breathe and chew and eat. His talking is about 40% of what he was,” she explained.
John described his wife as an incredible pillar of strength throughout his recovery.
When asked if her husband’s condition will improve, she remarked, “To be quite frank, no. When you have quadriplegia – which is a broken spine – his type of injury two-thirds is damaged.”
But their love is stronger than ever…
“We still talk! He’s still got the same intellect, though he gets on some of these drugs and he doesn’t share it about,” she laughed at her joke. “It’s a really wicked thing to say! I’ll tell you, John and I have had some of the worst jokes because you have to have a sense of humour.”
For more coverage on John Kennerley’s passing:
Kerri-Anne Kennerley confirms her husband John Kennerley has died: “You were the love of my life”
The incredible achievement Kerri-Anne’s husband John made after his tragic accident
Busy is a simple word for it… Kerri-Anne Kennerley’s new kind of normal
The touching time a fire brigade helped Kerri-Anne Kennerley and her husband
Kerri-Anne Kennerley celebrates wedding anniversary with husband John in hospital
