Sydney Anglican Carol Flavin has overcome enormous adversity to take her place in the Commonwealth Games Queen's Baton relay.
The 35-year-old mother of two survived a car accident and a stroke 12 years ago and was not expected to live, but last Thursday she walked a 350 metre leg of the relay having what she calls an "amazing experience'.
Members of the community nominated successful and inspirational people to participate in the relay that is seeing over 2150 community representatives carry the Queen's Baton across Australia before the Commonwealth Games commence in Melbourne on March 15.
However, neither Carol nor her husband, James who are members of St George North Anglican Church, know who nominated her.
James is convinced Carol was nominated for her incredible story of survival and overcoming adversity.
"Carol had a major car accident that caused a stroke back in 1994. She was not expected to survive, then when she did the doctors said she would never leave the nursing home and never be able to talk or walk again," James says.
"She spent a year going through some pretty horrible rehabilitation and they said she would never be able to have children. Now we have two lovely children."
Their children Dayna, 9 and Tom, 5 are true miracles according to Carol.
"It's a miracle. It was absolutely phenomenal. I can't believe how great God has been to us by blessing us with the lives of Dayna and Tom," Carol says.
James says they brought forward the decision to have children after Carol's accident despite the potential risks.
"The doctors said they weren't aware of anybody in the world in Carol's condition who survived and went on to have babies," he says.
Carol says her chance of surviving the after the stroke was one per cent. On the afternoon of the accident James says doctors told him "to prepare for the worst'.
James says the Christian community in his church at Kogarah Presbyterian Church, were a great support in this trying time.
"Christian friends and even the folks we didn't really know from church rallied around us really well," he says.
"People were praying for Carol and visiting her and they were bringing food to me and driving me to hospital."
Carol is now actively involved in church at St George North where she and James attend the 10am service at Carlton Public School. She has also been involved in a Scripture Union mission which she has not missed once in the last 15 years, even in the year of her accident.
"It's a wonderful time to fellowship together, read the Bible and pray," Carol says.
James says Carol, a former registered nurse, is a blessing to others in their church by using her own experience to comfort others.
"At church Carol is involved in a ladies group, she looks after children for other mothers and she meets one on one with a number of people from church to assist them in their own lives," he says.
A close friend from Carol's church suffered a brain injury a few years after Carol, allowing Carol to be a support for her friend.
"Whenever somebody has any sort of brain injury the phone call comes through to us. People ask, "What should we do? What should we expect?' We have become the first port of call for a lot of people with acquired brain injury," James says.
Carol says she values this role.
"I assure people, "It will get better. It will take time but it will get better'. I remind them that it's great just being alive," she says.
James calls Carol's survival "a sign of God's power, mercy and love'.
"It sounds very Hollywood, but I always felt God was with us and blessing us. There were emotional downtimes, but we never asked, "Why God did you make this happen?" he says.
"It was always "Thank you God for giving Carol another day."
Photos courtesy Ramon Williams
