How bird degree saved Dreamworld supervisor
It’s the untold story behind one of the darkest days in Gold Coast history. How the Dreamworld tragedy nearly destroyed Michael Clancy, before finding his wings by helping others
“MURDERERS!”
With a scream, two men jumped the counter of the guest services desk at Dreamworld, spraying their venom at the innocent staff.
“It’s your fault!” they yelled, as security guards wrestled them down before dragging them away.
It was 2016, just weeks after the October 25 tragedy that claimed four lives, and guest services supervisor Michael Clancy was under attack and struggling to cope.
He’d witnessed the horrific aftermath, his dreams were tortured by the terrible scenes he’d seen, but as he struggled to help the theme park get back to business, he found himself under constant harassment.
Park patrons would spit at him, staff were emailed death threats and even his own children were bullied at school – by parents – for what had occurred in one of the darkest chapters of Gold Coast history.
Michael’s corporate career at Dreamworld, of which he was so proud, had turned into a living nightmare.
Three months after the tragedy, he quit. It was all he could do as he fought for his life.
Drowning under the weight of PTSD, depression and anxiety, he tried every therapy he could imagine, but still found himself wishing that, if only he could sleep, he would not wake up. “It was the most awful time,” Michael says. “All of us w h o worked at the park at that time have suffe red ,
even if
they weren’t there on the day.
“There’s not one of us still left. I get anxious even now if I have to drive down the M1. I know we’ll never forget those who lost their lives that day, nor should we, but I think we have forgotten just how many people were deeply impacted and still suffer.
“My own children were targeted. I received a call one day from the before-school hours carer who said another parent had gone up to my son and told him ‘your Dad’s killed people’.
“My daughter was defending me but this parent said ‘if your Dad works for a company that murdered people, then he’s a murderer’. Thank goodness the school suspended that parent, but that’s just one example of what we went through.
“My daughter didn’t even want to tell me because she knew how much I was struggling, she wanted to protect me at her own expense. I felt like a failure as a father.
“I just couldn’t understand what was happening to me. I saw three heart specialists, and was out of pocket more than $3000, because I just couldn’t believe that the physical sensations I was feeling were from anxiety. I thought I must have cardiac issues. “Yet nothing was helping. I tried every form of therapy but I was just sinking further down. “Then one day I said to my wife, ‘I
think I’m going to get a bird’.”
And that was the day Michael discovered his wings.
Through caring for his eclectus parrot Archie, Michael found his purpose again. And he found a friend.
Simply caring for the bird was enough to get Michael out of bed, and chatting with Archie got him out of his head.
As he learned to better manage his own PTSD symptoms and triggers, Michael realised birds would be the perfect companion pet for many others facing mental health challenges.
Now, with the help of his feathered friends, Michael has turned tragedy into what will soon be a registered charity – Parrots for Purpose – matching more than 500 hand-raised birds with humans in need of support companions.
“I’m not so deluded as to think I can change the world, but what we can do at Parrots for Purpose is to make someone’s world happier. And we’re doing that one bird at a time.
“Not only did Archie help me find purpose in my day, but now my whole life has purpose. My family and I all do this together and it gives me such joy to help others.
“This was born from a tragedy but I am so grateful that where a lot of people turned to alcohol and drugs, I turned right at those crossroads and chose this path instead.
“The stories that I hear back from the people we have helped make up for what I went through. It’s restored my faith in humanity.
“Doing this work is effortless, I haven’t had to stress or worry about what’s going to happen next, it’s all unfolded naturally … not to get too spiritual or supernatural but it feels like it’s charmed.
“I’ve also had so much support. I could never have done this without the support of the NDIS and Carers Queensland, starting something like this while you’re still dealing with PTSD is an extra challenge. But it just reminds me of how much others need this help.
“I work with a lot of returned soldiers, and recently I’ve been helping a number of refugee families. The children have seen so much trauma so matching them with a native budgerigar gives them someone to love with no memories attached. This is a creature they’ve never seen before.
“Sometimes I feel like an ambulance chaser – wherever there is a disaster or trauma, there I am. I’ve given away 19 birds to victims of the floods who lost pets.
“I get so many referrals from GPS and health services, it’s amazing to be recognised for this service.
“The beauty of a bird is that it’s so easy to care for – but it still requires attention. You don’t have to take it for walks if you need to stay indoors, there are no smells, and not many dogs or cats can sit on your shoulder and talk to you. These birds have so much affection and personality, they’ll curl up under your chin to snuggle. It’s true animal magic.”
While Parrots for Purpose continues to spread its wings, Michael says he’s ready to take the next step and become a registered charity so he can help more people.
He says while he would happily sell a kidney to keep funding the service, it would be nice not to.
“It would be amazing to one day be able to draw a wage from this, however small, but my main priority is just to make sure that this can continue for as long as people need it – not until I run out of internal organs,” he laughs.
“Having seen death so close and understanding the truth of mortality and how things can change so quickly, I know that when it comes to money you can’t take it with you. I’m not interested in being rich – although I do have to feed my family. “Doing this, I sleep well now. “I know I’m making an impact, however small, in this world.”
And that’s what he’ll live on.
My daughter didn’t even want to tell me because she knew how much I was struggling