Carmen Leon de la Barra’s final wish to see the sunset and ocean for one last time granted

For almost a quarter of a century Carmen Leon de la Barra loved beach walks at Brighton-Le-Sands with her husband after the pair finished work. Mrs Leon de la Barra, stricken with cancer, was surrounded by her family as she had her final wish granted. WATCH THE TOUCHING VIDEO.

• War hero's dying wish finally granted

For almost a quarter of a century Carmen Leon de la Barra loved beach walks at Brighton-Le-Sands with her husband after the pair finished work at their nearby accountancy firm.

The couple would fill a Thermos of tea and wander the foreshore, admiring the ocean she loved.

Last week, stricken with cancer and in palliative care in Sydney’s west, Mrs Leon de la Barra held hope she would see the ocean for a final time.

With a Thermos of tea alongside her on a stretcher, Mrs Leon de la Barra was granted her wish by NSW Ambulance paramedics who worked with charity Dreams2Live4 to take her on a sunset trip to the beach on Wednesday.

Mrs Leon de la Barra managed to open her eyes and daughter Tatiana Salloum said her mother “was so happy.”

Carmen Leon de la Barra was given a ride in an ambulance to Brighton Le Sands. Picture: Supplied

She was joined by her husband, the couple had been to that beach every day since 1995. Picture: Supplied

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“It was at least two or three months since Mum had seen the water,” Ms Salloum said. “Dad couldn’t take her because of the distance and because of how sick she was.

“Mum had been sleeping a lot but when we got to the beach she knew where she was and managed to open her eyes.”

Her husband Antonio, the couple’s three children, their partners and grandchildren gathered by her bedside.

It would be her final journey outside Mt Druitt’s palliative care unit, she died from bowel cancer two days later at 9.30pm Friday.

Mrs Leon de la Barra had gone to the beach at Brighton-Le-Sands with her husband, whom she met at the age of 10 in their native Chile, almost every day since 1995.

The couple migrated to Sydney in 1989 and opened an accounting firm together at Mascot six years later.

Mrs Leon de la Barra enjoyed a warm tea with the view. Picture: Supplied

Her kids, their partners and grandchildren joined her by her bedside. Picture: Supplied

To avoid the peak hour traffic before heading home to western Sydney, they would close up for the day, pack a Thermos and head to Brighton-Le-Sands beach.

Ms Salloum made an application to the charity Dreams2Live4 last Tuesday and by 1pm the next day, the ball was rolling.

“When I told them Mum only had a few hours or days to live it became their mission to make it happen”, she said.

“Myself, my father, my two brothers, partners and seven of the nine grandchildren all headed to the beach from Mt Druitt.”

Mrs Leon de la Barra died from bowel cancer last Friday. Picture: Supplied

Paramedic Jeff Gadd was at Hawkesbury Hospital when his partner received the call asking for their assistance.

“With the help of Mt Druitt Palliative Care, Blacktown Hospital, Dreams2Live4 and the powers at Ambulance NSW, we were able to pick up Carmen from Mt Druitt and get her to the beach by sunset”, Gadd said.

“It’s one of the nicest jobs I’ve done. One of the first times in 15 years I’ve done something like this. It was such a simple job but very rewarding.”

The act of kindness mirrored that of two Queensland paramedics who granted a dying woman’s wish to see the ocean at Hervey Bay in 2017. That image went viral.