‘The absolute perfect husband and father’
A DEDICATED father and doctor who loved life to the full and was admired by all around him.
That is how family and friends have described Henri Sueke, who was killed while cycling to work in Rose Bay last Thursday. He was 36.
Originally from Manchester, Dr Sueke came to Sydney in March with his Australian-born wife Dani and their four children, taking up a role at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead as a paediatric ophthalmologist.
He died after becoming trapped under a wheel of a truck as he rode along New South Head Road, and will be laid to rest on Thursday (Jerusalem time) in Israel.
Speaking to The AJN this week, Dr Sueke’s father-in-law Dr Andy Garfagnini said he was a dedicated husband and father “who would do everything for and with his kids”.
“He was the absolute perfect husband and father whose main focus in life was his family,” Dr Garfagnini said. “They meant everything to him.”
Dr Garfagnini described Dr Sueke as a person “who truly lived the principle that what matters in life are people and relationships, and commitment to things that are of the highest ideals”.
“He led such a full life, he was never inactive for a moment. However much he could take on, he would.”
Dr Garfagnini said the response from the community has been overwhelming. “We were blown away by the amount of people who contacted us, in some way, who expressed their feelings to us. [It is] tremendous comfort to the family knowing this, it’s quite humbling at the same time
“What was lost was part of us, because it was either part of us in real terms or part of us in what we would like to be. That is what resonated in the community.”
Manchester’s Rabbi Amir Ellituv, who grew up with Dr Sueke, told The AJN, “Sometimes what people achieve in one lifetime, Henri achieved double that amount in his short lifetime.”
Describing the news of his death as a “total shock”, Rabbi Ellituv said, “Everyone loved Henri and his family. To hear this news was very difficult. He was my close confidant. He was a person who loved life to the full … he had the ability to welcome everyone, never to be judgmental.”
Rabbi Ellituv said there was never a conversation the pair had where they didn’t laugh and joke together.
“With Henri there was always joy. There was always laughter.”
To donate to the Sueke family, visit www.mycause.com.au and search for Henri Sueke.
EVAN ZLATKIS
Henri Sueke with his wife Dani. Photo: Facebook
comments