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Daniher’s son Luke said while the crowd knew him as a footballer, coach and campaigner, to him he was a “man with a sweet tooth who occasionally hid his chocolate biscuits from us four kids”. double quotation mark One of Dad’s happiest memories wasn’t a football memory at all. It was watching the children become parents and seeing the grandchildren grow. The older I get, the more I realise Dad’s greatest legacy isn’t what he achieved, it’s what he passed on – the values, the perspective, the example. Daughter Bec , who is the executive director and spokesperson for FightMND, says her dad was her mentor: double quotation mark I once heard that grief is the price that we pay for love, and I loved you boundlessly. So, I’ll carry that grief gladly, because it comes from it, comes from such a deep privilege to have had those laughs, those lessons, the challenges, and all those moments in between, the big and small, that shaped who I am today. I wouldn’t trade a single one. To the world you inspired so many, but to me you were simply my dad, the one who guided me when I couldn’t see the next step, whose laughter filled the room, whose charm and cheeky smile could light up anyone around him. Bec Daniher: ‘To the world you inspired so many, but to me you were simply my dad.’ Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP She said in the coming weeks she will welcome a baby boy he was desperate to meet but she knows he will have Daniher’s “spirit and laugh”. Son Ben described Daniher as his “kindred spirit”, who he talked “endlessly” to about politics, movies and music: double quotation mark My dad was a tyrant when it came to the control of the music, and anyone who knows me well knows I inherited that trait. We both like to rule the speakers with an iron fist. Some have said they haven’t seen a more autocratic father-son duo since Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un … and they’re probably right. Ben Daniher speaks at his father’s state funeral on Wednesday. Photograph: James Wiltshire/AFL Photos/Getty Images There have also been touching tributes from his young grandchildren, Cooper and Rosie . Cooper said: double quotation mark When I was born, Pops couldn’t hold me with his arms. He still found a way to rock me with his legs, even when he couldn’t talk. He used his machine to chat and called me and my brother Ollie cheeky monkeys. My pops was strong, brave, and courageous, and I hope I can be like him when I grow up. I miss you, Poppy, play on. Rosie said she wishes he could “come back to see us and take me on adventures: double quotation mark I wish he could come back to the Big Freeze. Poppy, I see you as a star in the sky. I hope you got to see me push the sliders down. I love you. Paul Kelly performs during Neale Daniher’s state funeral. Photograph: James Wiltshire/AFL Photos/Getty Images
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    While we mourn Danihers passing, lets not forget his enduring legacy of hope and resilience. His daughter Becs words remind us that true impact isnt measured by fame, but by the values we pass forward - a perspective that deserves more attention than fleeting headlines.