Colin Gray became a quadriplegic at 62 but his fight was far from over

His wife, Jenny, started to phone him when she arrived home that day and realised Mr Gray had not returned for lunch.

Lunch was always at noon, or slightly after if it was a busy day.

It was 3pm.

Mrs Gray had already visited the local CFA shed, but Mr Gray had not been seen, so she knew her husband would have to be at their turn-out block two kilometres away.

The property was wet in places but as Mrs Gray, a registered nurse, walked around the property, she could see the tractor in the distance.

"When she pulled up and asked what's wrong, I said, 'I've broken my neck'," Mr Gray, a Nilma North farmer, said.

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By this stage, Mr Gray had been laying on his back for nearly five hours unable to move, was drifting in and out of consciousness and was experiencing severe hypothermia.

Hours earlier, Mr Gray had been using a post driver on the back of his tractor.

"I lifted the post driver up and what happened after that, buggered if I know," Mr Gray said.

"My phone was in my pocket, but I lost my finger use so I couldn't put my hand in to get my phone."

Mr Gray was flown to The Alfred Hospital's Trauma Centre where he remained for a week.

He was then moved to the Austin Hospital's intensive care unit for a week before he was placed in the spinal ward, 3 North, for four months.

Mr Gray had become an incomplete C5 C6 quadriplegic.

After three months in the spinal ward, he underwent seven months of rehabilitation at The Royal Talbot in Kew.

He returned home for only two weeks before he developed a chest infection which placed him in hospital for another five months.

"I've been lucky," Mr Gray said, despite the unsettling outlook.

"I was someone that used to work 80 to 100 hours a week, I was a bit of a dickhead.

"I have a good wife of 48 years, I have a good family, and our neighbours and friends have been something you would never believe."

At the time of the accident, Mr Gray, a third-generation farmer whose grandfather bought the Gippsland property in the 1880s, was milking about 270 Friesian cows.

It is still unclear exactly what caused the accident.

"I was typical of most farmers because I worked on my own all the time," he said.

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As an incomplete quadriplegic, Mr Gray has no movement below the shoulders, however, he has partial movement in his arms and fingers.

Adding to Mr Gray's complex condition, he also has a tracheostomy, a hole on the front of his neck, to help clean and remove secretions from the airway.

The tracheostomy was put in because Mr Gray was unable to clear his airway, putting him at increased risk of chest infections.

But in a remarkable example of resilience, Mr Gray believes he lives a "lucky" life.

The 73-year-old is the treasurer at the Buln Buln Football Club, and has overseen the transition of moving the club's finances online, and is president of the Nilma North and Lilco Hall Committee where he was instrumental in securing a $60,000 grant for an all-abilities undercover barbecue area.

He is also an inaugural member and still actively involved with the Warragul Woodworkers Club, and still assists his local fire brigade where he had served for 45 years at the time of his accident.

And while Mr Gray - who uses a wheelchair - requires 24-hour care, it has also not stopped him from playing an active role in the management of his farm, alongside share farmer, Will Colbert.

Colin's daughter, Robyn Mitchard, admires her father's resilience.

"He has set up a paperless bookkeeping system for the farm, and as the owner of the farm, he oversees capital, infrastructure improvements and assists the share farmer with the strategic decisions," she said.

Mrs Mitchard was due to be married six weeks after Mr Gray's injury in 2011, which was delayed 11 months and eventually held a year later.

"It was one of my biggest achievements, being able to walk Robyn down the aisle after my injury," Mr Gray said.

"The other big achievement was being able to obtain my licence again."

The farm operation now includes 350 dairy cows spread across the 92-hectare home property, the 40-hectare turn-out block and other leased land.

Mr Gray has access to a computer with three screens, a printer and a scanner and it is there where he carries out his administration tasks.

"I've always done my own bookkeeping, even when we didn't have a computer," he said.

In another case of resilience, Mr Gray was able to write and sign his name, shave with a normal shaver and use a spoon within the first 12 months of hand therapy.

"That might not sound much to you, but shit, it meant a lot to me," he said.

His ongoing care has been funded by the Transport Accident Commission, and includes 24-hour nurse/carer support, as well as subsided medical and therapy expenses.

The funding has also helped cover accessibility renovations to the family house, a motorised wheelchair and a van which gives Mr Gray accessibility and some freedom.

"If the tractor had not been registered, I would have been in a nursing home," Mr Gray said.

"Because the tractor was registered, the TAC covered 95 per cent of the cost.

"I recently paid the $90 registration on my tractor, and even if you don't drive your farm machinery on the road, you are covered by the TAC if your vehicles are registered and are involved in an accident on the farm.

"If you want a bloody good investment, there it is."

In the first year at home, Mr Gray said he spent more than a million dollars in upgrades to his property, specialist care and medications.

"When I go back to the Austin every couple of months for a trachy change, you always see a lot of people worse off than yourself," he said.

"Some people have marriage break ups, others don't have support or an illness.

"I suppose I'm one of the lucky ones."

Over the coming week, ACM Agriculture will be sharing stories of people succeeding in agriculture with disabilities, as we lead up to International Day of People with Disability on December 3.

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