Denis to the Rescue
OK I bet there's a trillion billion Denis stories out there, and it's only fair to share them around, so here's mine - I'm just babbling, so all apologies now as I'm sure it'll be too long.
Like anyone on the Gold Coast I couldn't help run into Denis a few times, but the first time we properly met he was in full hero mode. I was only sixteen, but already had bouncers at The Playroom and The Patch bluffed that I was legal - these were pre photo i.d. days when a photocopy of your aunt Hilda's dole card could get you in anywhere. But the world was changing.
When Denis first swooped to the rescue, I was out the front of the Surfers Paradise Beergarden with a carload of older crew fresh off a win at some teams challenge. The presso was about to start, but half the winning team were out the front trying to convince the bouncers to let me slide in - gotta love a drunk crusade. Security had seen me coming a mile off, and decided to curb a potential drama by enforcing the new-fangled photo identification laws - even though they knew I wouldn't have any (not only because I was underage; hardly a person in the country had it yet!)
I'm not even sure where he came from, but before you could say lickety split Denis had me under his wing, spouting something about signing an affidavit to vouch for my age. I kept protesting, trying to subtly pull him aside, but Denis was on a roll. Utilizing the full command of his legal background, Denis politely argued how a person of his community standing wouldn't risk his reputation if he was uncertain of my legal entitlement to enter, and demanded to see the manager. Half and hour and lots of wildly waving arms later, and the big boss agreed to let me inside in exchange for some legal statement Denis had written out on a beer coaster.
It was only once we reached the bar that Denis formally introduced himself, adding, "You ARE 18, right?" When I shook my head, Denis just burst out laughing - the crazy maniac laughter of someone who's been duped.
He handled it so well - and I'd been seriously awed by all his effort- so I didn't have the heart to tell him I wasn't even planning to stick around. I was just tagging along to get a ride to the Southport Worker's Club to see Concrete Blonde play - the boys had promised they'd just grab their trophy and we'd be off. I would have happily waited in the car. But then I wouldn't have gotten my first glimpse of Denis in full defender mode, would I?
That was 18 years ago, so I got to see Denis assist hundreds of people who (unlike me) were actually deserving of his help in the years since. I don't think he was just an incredibly compassionate man - he was a real lateral thinker and blessed with a mountain of energy. He was smart enough to recognize solutions to people's problems, then motivated enough to make sure those solutions were followed through. His enthusiasm for life was infectious, and you couldn't help but get caught up in whatever his mission was - save the environment, save your neighbour, save the world... It's no co-incidence his ticker eventually gave out on him; he'd spent a big chunk of his life giving his heart to whatever he was involved with. He consistently tackled big things head on - big issues, big waves - even if he was seriously under gunned. You've gotta love that in a person, and that's why the world's now a poorer place.
RIP Denis, we'll miss your mad laugh and eyes that twinkled whenever a ripe challenge was near.
Caz xx
