WHILE attending Vivid Work Crew in Swan Hill has become a key part of Chris Neill’s weekly routine, it’s not all work for the Swan Hill resident.
Working every Monday and Thursday with the Work Crew gives Chris routine each week, giving him a reason to jump out of bed in the morning.
Vivid Work Crew estimated that close to 60 per cent of the kindling across Swan Hill was split by Chris, the hard worker unstoppable with the kindling splitter.
Chris said he had been a part of the Work Crew for “a very long time,” and that he’d also had the chance to do many enjoyable things with Vivid.
Sixty-eight-year-old Chris is a big fan of live music and has attended a number of concerts with the support of Vivid Swan Hill, both locally and on the road.
The chance to travel to Marvel Stadium to witness the live show of one-time Beatle Sir Paul McCartney last year was a highlight for Chris.
Chris said while the number of people in the stadium “was a bit too much”, McCartney put on a fantastic show.
Chris’s love of music has been a lifelong passion, but there is one act that tops all of the lists for Chris: Elvis Presley.
Chris recently had the opportunity to travel to Melbourne on a supported holiday, where he attended the Melbourne International Elvis Festival.
Not only did Chris have the chance to witness some of the world’s best Elvis impersonators live on stage, he also attended a meet-and-greet with them.
In the next best thing to meeting the real Elvis Presley, Chris met with and had his photo taken with five Elvis impersonators at one time.
His love of Elvis is so strong that he now has The King permanently inked on his forearm – a constant reminder of the musician he holds so dear.
Chris received support to travel to a studio in Bendigo to have the tattoo completed, adorned with Presley’s signature beneath his portrait.
It was the realisation of a dream for Chris, having aspired for quite some time to have an Elvis tattoo.
Without the support of NDIS, the team at Vivid said they wouldn’t have the chance to support their participants to follow their dreams and explore the things they were passionate about.
