A politician fighting motor neurone disease has broken down in tears as Victoria's parliament paused to pay tribute to Neale Daniher.
Labor MP Emma Vulin was among MPs across the political spectrum to speak on a condolence motion for Daniher in the state's lower house on Tuesday, after the 65-year-old's death in late May.
Ms Vulin said the former AFL great and FightMND co-founder personally reached out to her after she was diagnosed with MND in 2024.
"He didn't have to, because he didn't know me from a bar of soap, but he invited my partner, Matt, and me into his home," the Pakenham MP said.
"We sat with Neil and his beautiful wife, Jan, and had an honest conversation about what was ahead."
Ms Vulin, who will not recontest her seat in Melbourne's outer southeast at the November state election, said Daniher didn't sugar-coat things.
"He told me what I needed to know about maintaining independence, about equipment I would need, and planning ahead, and the realities of this disease," she said.
"But he also gave me and my family something incredibly important - he gave his kindness, generosity, and hope.
"Since then, I have heard the same story from countless others living with MND."
Through tears, Ms Vulin said Daniher's legacy, courage, compassion and determination would live on for generations.
MND encompasses a group of diseases that weaken and kill nerve cells, with patients gradually losing the ability to walk, talk, swallow and breathe.
With no cure, the average life expectancy is two to three years from diagnosis.
Premier Jacinta Allan commended Daniher for raising awareness of the insidious disease by letting people see what it did to him.
"A diagnosis of MND carried a terrible darkness, too few answers, too little awareness, too little research, too little families could hold on to - Neale changed that," she said.
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson also praised Daniher for offering hope to sufferers and choosing not to retreat from public life.
"He transformed his personal battle into a national cause," she said.
Ms Wilson, Liberal deputy leader David Southwick, Labor ministers Steve Dimopoulos, Luba Grigorovitch and Paul Edbrooke, and other MPs are set to plunge into a tank of icy water on June 15 to raise funds for FightMND.
The inaugural Freeze Parliament event in 2025 raised more than $50,000.
It will follow the annual Big Freeze slide before Melbourne and Collingwood's clash on King's Birthday and a state funeral service for Daniher, also at the MCG, on June 10.
