By JARROD POTTER
Bill Crawford spreads message of deadly disease before his passing…
SPREADING the message about a disease which greatly affected his life was Bill Crawford’s last wish.
A week before he passed away, he talked to the News about his desire to get the word out about haemochromatosis and the great loves in his life – family, cricket, football and a couple of his favourite vices.
William Francis Crawford, Bill to everyone he knew, passed away on Friday after battling liver cancer, triggered by an underlying disease he didn’t know he had until he was well into his 50s.
After a pair of strokes 10 years ago, the doctor’s diagnosis was hereditary haemochromatosis – or iron overload – which as the nickname suggests is a condition where the body accumulates too much iron.The excess iron finds its way into muscles and organs, and for Bill it caused the most havoc in his liver where it eventually created cancerous tumours.
“We want people to know about this haemochromatosis as the disease is out there – people should be checked for it for a start,” Crawford said.
“Find out what has to be done about it and not wait until you’re 50.
“It’s hereditary and they’ve got to tell their family – let your family know to be checked.”
Bill’s wife Dianne implored anyone with a European background – the primary ethnic group affected by it – to get checked as it can be looked for routine blood test and if found early enough haemochromatosis is treatable and manageable.
“We want people to be aware – check out the warnings,” Di Crawford said.
“Ask them for a haemochromatosis test – what’s the problem, it’s just a blood test.”
He was always surrounded by loved ones – Dianne, his wife of 36 years, his mother Fay, brother Shane, his three sons, three grandchildren and everyone who seemingly ever bumped into the loveable character.
The robust right-arm paceman, who played for a long list of Dandenong area cricket clubs including Parfield, Lyndale, Parkmore and Dandenong West, loved the sport so much that he even played on his wedding day. By mistake that is, as a rain-delay forced the 1978 grand final to be postponed.
It left Bill and Dianne to get married in Tooradin at 11am and drive down at a rapid pace down the freeway to Wonthaggi – changing into the whites in the car – to help win the final.
But it’s not his individual sporting successes that mean the most to him – Crawford was always keen to see the team come first.
He also loved his football and the champion full forward was affiliated either as player or coach with Doveton JFC, Dandenong West juniors, Wonthaggi, Hampton Park, Oakleigh Thirds and Dandenong thirds.
As his cancer took a greater hold in September, Crawford was thrilled to prolong his innings and make it to one last Christmas with his family and said he’ll miss those family moments most of all.
“Out of everything – I’ll miss Dianne most,” he said.
“You’ll miss everything though – you think of things that you’re going to miss and everything relates to everything.
“I watch the races during the day, little brother Shane, my grandkids getting married – it’s very hard to put one on top of the other, I’ll miss my mother, Dianne, Kristy (daughter-in-law) and now Mel’s in the family.”
He wrote his grandchildren a letter to properly say goodbye, and was grateful to tell them early enough about his disease, so they could also say goodbye to their Pop.
Always cheerful, even to the very end, Crawford was a perennial fixture on the boundary at Arch Brown Reserve.
He was always at the cricket – watching his son Ryan charge in for Berwick – sitting with his transistor radio, form guide and a cooler with a few cigarettes, soaking up the sun and just enjoying everything about being there. It’s that memory of Bill that many will fondly remember now that his innings has ended.
Crawford wanted to acknowledge Fowles Auction and the Berwick Cricket Club – players and supporters – for helping him in his final months.
Bill is survived by his wife Dianne, mother Fay, children Ryan, Bryce and Shannon, grandchildren Ethan, Beau, Christian and family members Kristy and Mel.
Bill Crawford’s funeral was held yesterday (Wednesday) at the Springvale Botanical Cemetery.
