A disability has not dimmed Vikki Cooney’s lust for adventure.
Ten years ago, Vikki Cooney was diagnosed with paraneoplastic syndrome, a consequence of her breast cancer.
Now aged 59, she lives in a Mooroopna nursing home, as the syndrome has left her unable to stand unaided and with moderate speech difficulties.
Regardless of her illness, Mrs Cooney’s thrill-seeking attitude lifted her 900m in the air, flying in a glider.
Pilot and photographer Trevor Phillips heard about Mrs Cooney through his friend Tina Forrester, who is also her carer.
Together, they contacted the Lions Club of Shepparton asking for assistance.
With the club providing the necessary funding, the adventure was cleared for take-off from the Bendigo Flying Club, with Mrs Cooney’s family watching on.
Mr Phillips said Mrs Cooney’s flight was not as straightforward as it would be for an ordinary passenger, with her husband and family having to assist her to get into the glider and special measures taken to ensure he and Mrs Cooney could communicate with each other.
Due to Mrs Cooney’s speech difficulties, Mr Phillips made a flashing light for her to answer yes or no to questions during the flight or to inform him if she was in distress.
He said, though, that her answers, and the smile on her face, left little for interpretation.
“She loved it. Absolutely loved it,” he said.
Her husband, Gary Cooney, also said his wife enjoyed the flight immensely.
He thanked the Lions Club and Mr Phillips for creating such a memorable moment for his wife.
“I’d like to thank them very much for their support and reassure them that Vikki loved it,” he said.
Initially, Mrs Cooney wanted to tandem skydive, but there were concerns her immobility would be a safety issue, so now, after such a successful outing, Mr Phillips is planning to take Mrs Cooney on another flight next year.