Tributes for Steve Wilton, Manly Life Saving Club legend, who died of Motor Neurone Disease

Tributes are flowing for a Manly surf club legend, who was described as the ‘bravest man’, after a cruel disease robbed him of his ability to talk and walk in the last months of his life.

A Manly surf club legend has been described as the ‘bravest man’, after Motor Neurone Disease robbed him of the ability to talk and walk in the months before he died.

Steve Wilton, 63, who was married with three children, was remembered by 150 people who attended a memorial for him on the rooftop of Hotel Steyne on Friday.

More than 50 also took part in a paddle out at 6am, while many others lined the foreshore at Manly.

As well as a long-time member of Manly Life Saving Club, he was well known by the sailing fraternity and had a yacht moored outside Manly Skiff Club.

Dan Mulcay, a close friend, said Motor Neurone Disease was a particularly cruel condition because while the mind stays intact, the body fails.

“He knew what was coming and he took it head on,” he said. “He never complained.

“He was one of the bravest people I ever met.”

Steve Wilton, 63, of Manly, with wife Caroline Chavez, 50, before he was in a wheelchair.

He added that he was a well-loved member of the community because he was “very affable”.

“He was 6ft 2, always smiling, he never said ‘no’,” Mr Mulcay said. “He would always help you.

“Apparently, he was also very good looking.”

Mr Mulcay, 61, said he was so popular his friends fought to get on the roster to take him for his favourite walk every day from Manly to Shelly Beach when he could no longer go by himself.

Mr Wilton’s wife, Caroline Chavez, 50, said they met at a fundraiser seven years ago and within three months had moved in together.

They married in 2017.

He already had two children Harry, 23, and Bella, 21, from a previous relationship and Ms Chavez had one, Sofia, 20.

“We were both rogues, colourful and confident,” she said.

“We were a powerhouse. It was amazing.

“Everyone spoke about our love for each other. We were the epitome of true love.”

Ms Chavez said Mr Wilton, an engineer and a successful farmer, noticed his speech was slurring in January 2020.

But it took 14 visits to doctors and specialists before he was diagnosed in August of that year.

Quite soon after he lost the ability to talk and the use of his dominant left arm. He taught himself to rely on his right hand and used an iPad to communicate with people.

“We had 12 months after he was diagnosed,” Ms Chavez said.

“He was stoic and stable, he just wore it. He was an incredibly smart man.

“Together we stepped up to every challenge.

“We did everything we needed to do and say before he died.

“I said, ‘Honey I’ll find you’. He tapped on his iPad, ‘not too soon’.

“I said, ‘This is only the beginning of our journey’.”

Ms Chavez praised the Manly community’s response following her husband’s terrible diagnosis.

Meals were cooked for the couple, friends took him out and when he fell out of bed at 5am – she was able to call on people to come and help lift him up.

“It was just a beautiful display of a community reaching out, it was pure love,” Ms Chavez said.

Mr Wilton was born in England and was a lifelong Chelsea fan.

He moved to Australia more than 40 years ago and as a Manly Life Saving Club volunteer he patrolled Manly Beach for 15 years.

He was also the chairman of Manly Nippers for several years.

His father, 93, attended the memorial, along with Mr Wilton’s three brothers, Jeremy, Niall and Christian.

They all spoke at his memorial, as did Professor Dominic Rowe who was his Motor Neurone Disease specialist at Macquarie University.

“He faced this dreadful disease with the same courage and humour he displayed in the rest of his life,” Prof Rowe said.

Steve Wilton, 63, of Manly, with wife Caroline Chavez, left and daughter Bella, before he was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease.

“Motor neurone Disease is a ruthless, relentless killer.

“One in 300 in Australia will develop it. The average survival rate is less than three years.”
He said ten per cent of cases are caused by a faulty gene, but 90 per cent are sporadic. Mr Wilton’s disease was sporadic, it came out of the blue, and the cause unknown.

He said there is some research to suggest some cases can be linked to the environment, in particular exposure to blue and green algae found in water, such as Manly Dam.

However, not everyone exposed to the algae will go on to develop the disease.