Twelve months after almost dying from Influenza A, Geraldton cafe owner Ron Payne is still overcome by the warm wishes of customers and locals he passes in the street.
"I cannot go to the shop without five or six people asking me, 'How are you going?' so it has been wonderful," Mr Payne said.
On June 18 last year the father of two collapsed and was airlifted to hospital in Perth.
He spent 37 days in intensive care with his family unsure if he would survive.
But no sooner had he got through rehabilitation and returned home to open the family business with his wife, Donna, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
"Pretty scary actually because you cannot see it, that is the thing," Mr Payne said.
"Every person who comes in with a sniffle you think, 'Have they got it?' but I think being in Geraldton we are quite lucky."
Grateful he is still here
Mr Payne suffered permanent kidney damage from the illness and cannot risk contracting another potentially deadly virus.
"My kidneys failed so I go to dialysis three times a week and in between that I go to work and try to live a normal life but especially with the pandemic it has been pretty hard," he said.
Their business was one of many in the Mid West forced to shut during the COVID-19 shutdowns and they have kept afloat thanks to government grants.
"He did not go the supermarket or petrol station or anything," Ms Payne said.
"The only place he went was from home to hospital for dialysis."
After spending more than two months at home they have now reopened the business but remain cautious about infection control.
While many may see the couple's year as a 'nightmare', Ms Payne said she was just grateful she still had her husband.
"We consider ourselves lucky because he is still here with us and able to work," she said.
"It could have been a lot worse considering he could not walk and talk. He has come a long way. He is doing well."
Mr Payne will meet with his medical specialists this week to discuss his suitability for a kidney transplant.
