Sue Murray was born in Melbourne in 1961 and has many memories of what life was like back then. She remembers the dunny man who used to come in his red truck to empty the outhouses.

“My kids were mortified when I told them about him. But that was how life was back then".

In 1990, Sue went on a Contiki Tour for four weeks travelling around Europe. Nine travellers, including Sue, decided to return to London and get a house together. Sue stayed for two years and immediately picked up a job at Saxone Shoes at Charing Cross. While there, she also worked in a sports store and taught Aerobics.

In 1992, she returned to Hervey Bay for three weeks and never left.

Sue has had a few jobs over the years, including working in a fruit barn, a lady’s gymnasium, a bank, and managing Sussan stores. For the last fifteen years, she has been the practice supervisor at Bayside Radiology, a role she loves.

In 2006, Sue became a Surf Life Saver and enrolled her kids in Nippers.

“I love surf life-saving. The club is full of great people, and I enjoy helping those on the beach. It is a great way to give back to your community”.

Growing up, Sue was also an avid water skier and loved to scuba dive.

Years ago, Sue headed out on the water at Queenscliff in Victoria for a dive experience. This trip would be remembered for all of the wrong reasons and is the stuff of nightmares.

Before entering the water, Sue was informed that two of the divers had gone down the dive rope to wait for her and her dive buddy. As the pair got deeper, Sue’s dive buddy panicked, so she had to take her back to the boat.

“I went down the rope again but couldn't see the divers. I looked around a bit but then couldn’t find the dive rope and got caught in the current.

“Finally, I began to surface but heard a boat motor, so I went down deep enough to not get hit. Then, I got washed through a rocky channel and bashed side to side in the current.

“When I did manage to surface again, there was not a boat in sight. I was alone in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight.

“I inflated my BC vest and swapped to a snorkel to conserve my air. In those days, we didn't wear a torch or have a whistle on our dive vests. I was floating about out there, trying to keep calm, and all I could think of was, is this how Harold Holt felt when he drowned and was never found?

“After what appeared to be ages, I heard a boat. I waved like mad to get their attention, and thank God, it worked.

“They had to lift me out of the water as I was exhausted and dehydrated, I was sobbing so hard. The boat crew were astounded.

“The other boat should have been searching for me, but they never did. I am just so thankful that I lived to tell the story”.

It took many years before Sue worked up the courage to dive again, but she gave it a go on our artificial reef with two great divers who never left her side, but it was never the same as Sue was too afraid.

Sue lives by the mantra, “never look behind you because you have been there and done that. Look forward to all that still awaits for you to discover and explore”.  

By Kim Parnell

What’s On Fraser Coast