When Wyndham Vale’s D’Mello family embark on a fundraising drive to Sydney and back next month, they won’t be doing so just to honour a family friend, but because of him.
On April 14 Maria and Danny D’Mello and their two kids will set off in their red Fiat 500 on a two week journey to Sydney and back to raise funds for the Werribee Mercy palliative care unit.
It was at that same palliative care unit where close family friend, Rob Costa, spent his final days battling a rare form of cancer before it took his life in December 2023.
Maria D’Mello works at Werribee Mercy in a non-clinical role and often kept Mr Costa company during his final months.
It was during these morning visits that she told him of her husband Danny’s plan to take the family on an interstate odyssey in his Fiat.
“I’d say ‘Rob, my husband’s got this crazy idea. He wants to drive our Fiat with me and the kids all the way to Sydney,” recalled Maria who mentioned it to Rob, a mechanic and car nut himself, in the hope he would talk her husband out of it.
Instead, he did the opposite.
“He goes nah don’t worry it’s a great idea, do it,” said Maria of Rob’s encouragement to which he added a poignant coda: “you only live once.”
Rob Costa passed away shortly after, convincing the D’Mellos to not only do the drive, but fund raise along the way too.
“We would love some VR (virtual reality) goggles,” said Maria of what they hope the funds will buy for palliative care unit.
“The goggles take you to another world that you can experience without leaving (the unit).”
The D’Mellos will depart from Wyndham Harbour on the Sunday afternoon following a fundraising car meet in the morning and will travel to Sydney and back along the coast via the Princes Highway.
To donate visit: fundraise-mercyhealthfoundation.raisely.com/t/maria-dmellos-team
