A heartbroken widower has recounted his anguish after his young wife died of a stroke just six weeks after the birth of their first child.
Shannon Sime, a 29-year-old British hairdresser residing on the Gold Coast, experienced a stroke on August 5 and died three days later.
Ms Sime gave her organs in a final act of kindness, perhaps saving the lives of five others.
Ms Sime’s heart was given to someone who had only 24 hours to live.
She and her husband Scott had only recently given birth to their daughter Harlow, leaving the dad sad as he nurtures his infant alone.
In an emotional Facebook post, Mr Sime said that Shannon is the most lovely person he has ever met. She’s made the world a better place, and it gives him comfort to know how many great influences she’s had on people’s lives from all over the world.
The couple relocated from the United Kingdom to South Australia 10 years ago and have made a life for themselves, spending time in Adelaide, Melbourne, and most recently the Gold Coast.
Mr Sime stated that he is ‘eternally thankful’ that his wife selected him to ‘do life’ with.
He is in amazement of all the incredible things they’ve been able to do together and how, despite all she’s been through, she was still able to find the courage to live every day as if it were her last and be as unselfish as she is, he added.
Ms Sime was ‘loved by anybody who had the privilege of knowing her,’ according to tributes from family and friends.
Daniel O’Hara, a close friend of the pair, claimed Ms Sime’s stroke came out of nowhere and she hadn’t been sick at the time.
It’s been incredibly difficult, they were so near yet so far away in Adelaide as they were on the Gold Coast, he remarked.
The 29-year-old is described as extremely generous, spending her Christmases feeding the poor and trimming the hair of domestic abuse victims.
Mr. O’Hara and his wife have created a GoFundMe page to help Mr. Sime monetarily while he takes time off from his job as a crane operator to care for Harlow.
Mr. O’Hara stated that he and his wife met the couple in 2013 while living in Adelaide and remained close to them throughout the years.
On Friday, he will go to Queensland to be at his friend’s side.
He’s a shell of the man he used to be, and Mr. O’Hara believes he’s trying to understand how to be a parent, Mr. O’Hara said.
But he’s tremendously powerful. He couldn’t imagine having to plan a funeral for his wife at the age of 29, yet Scott did it all by himself.
I genuinely don’t even know where to begin writing this… Last Friday morning, Shannon was rushed into hospital….
Posted by Scott Sime on Thursday, August 11, 2022
Mr Sime’s parents have come here from the United Kingdom, but he has no other relatives in Australia.
The Simes, on the other hand, have a huge network of friends in Adelaide who have gathered behind the dad in his time of grief.
Mr. O’Hara has organized a fundraising soccer tournament and silent auction, with revenues benefiting Mr. Sime as well as stroke and organ donation awareness.
Ms Sime, according to Mr. O’Hara, was “loved by all she met.”
All fell in love with her and Scott, they were contagious, he explained.
She always had a grin on her face and a cheerful attitude toward life.
According to the Stroke Foundation, over 27,000 Australians had a stroke in 2020, with one in every four having one in their lifetime.
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 23 Australians died from a stroke per day in 2019, making it one of the top five causes of death.
