Heartwarming moment 22 tradies pitch in for a war veteran suffering from a brain tumour and build him a $40,000 driveway for free
- Gold Coast man is overwhelmed with emotion after tradies build him a driveway
- Army veteran Ash Hurley was diagnosed with potentially fatal brain tumour
- Word got out he needed a new driveway so a team of kind tradies stepped up
- The team of more than 20 then built Mr Hurley a new driveway
A war veteran battling a brain tumour was reduced to tears when 22 tradies came together to build him a new $40,000 driveway.
Gold Coast man Ash Hurley, 40, who served in the Australian Army as a gunner, was forced to stop working in 2019 after being diagnosed with a potentially deadly tumour.
Mr Hurley was planning to upgrade his driveway to make it easier for his two sons Byron, 3, and Hunter, 7, but after the diagnosis he had to put it on hold.
Army veteran Ash Hurley (pictured) was reduced to tears when more than 20 tradies volunteered their time and expertise to build him a new $40,000 driveway after he was diagnosed with a brain tumour
After catching wind of the abandoned plan Bucky Selkirk, who runs a Facebook group for tradies, told the veteran he'd hatched a plan to help.
'Given Ash has done a lot for our country by serving in the army, there were plenty of people out there happy to donate their time,' Mr Selkirk told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
Mr Selkirk put the word out and more than 20 tradies volunteered including one who drove his concrete pump from the Sunshine Coast.
'I just wanted to do stuff to try to lift his spirits a little bit,' Mr Selkirk told Seven News.
As the team put the finishing touches on the new driveway, Mr Hurley was overcome with emotion.
'I’ve been overwhelmed, for these guys who don’t know me to give up their time and money is incredible,' he said.
Share this article
Doctors told Mr Hurley to prepare for the worst when he went in for his first round of surgery.
'The doctors didn’t think I was going to make it through the operation,' he said.
He has put on 60kg since undergoing treatment for his tumour, but doctors recently told him they were finally starting to 'get on top of it'.
The former soldier completed tours of service in East Timor and Malaysia before starting his own pool building business.
Mr Hurley fought back tears as he thanked the tradies who volunteered their time for him and his sons.
Mr Hurley (pictured), who served in East Timor and Malaysia, was diagnosed with the potentially fatal brain tumour in 2019 and was forced to stop working
