A Perth carer has told how a death-defying fall in Dubai eight years ago transformed him from a self-centred playboy into a committed charity worker.
Andrew Blair, 38, nearly died when he sustained a severe brain injury falling four floors from a balcony at his then girlfriend’s flat while at a party in the affluent United Arab Emirates city in 2010.
After four months in a coma the project manager, who is now a support worker for charity ENABLE Scotland, was taken home to Scotland where he began the slow process of learning to walk and talk again.
His journey continued this month when he thanked those who had helped him with his latest six-month fundraising drive to help others who are living with learning difficulties or a brain injury.
Working with Tesco, Andrew organised four fundraising days, collecting on the shop floor for Enable Scotland and raising more than £900. It comes after a similar collection for charity Mindspace in 2017.
“I wanted to do whatever I could to get back into the zone where I felt like I was being the best I could be. We did four dates and I even ended up doing one of them on my own. All I cared about was giving something back,” he said.
“Now I work in care I see the difficulties people face. Beforehand, I was like the rest of society. When you see a disabled person you think ‘tough luck’, but when you’ve been through an injury you start to understand the exceptional difficulties people face.
“I want to thank the Tesco management team, ENABLE Scotland volunteers, and my mum and sister who supported me throughout my recovery.”
It is far cry from his life in the Middle East, where Andrew briefly became the poster boy for the effect of the financial crash on privileged workers.
He appeared on the cover of the Financial Times and CNN when he scrawled his CV and mobile phone number on the back of his white Porsche Boxster S sports car after losing his £75,000 tax-free job.
“When I lived in Dubai it was a very, very selfish thing. I was earning £5,500 a month and all I cared about was the size of my house and how fast my car was,” Andrew continued.
“I earned nearly £300,000 out there and I came home with nothing. The regret is that I was so mentally lost that I spent that kind of money every month.”
He said his recovery was difficult, but can now see positives in his injury.
“Now I’m far calmer, more grounded and more interested in how people are getting on. That’s why I got into care. When you see someone that’s interested in the clients it makes a massive difference,” he added.
