‘Devastated’: Wife’s touching tribute to Labor figure Tim Picton
Tim Picton’s wife has held a touching tribute to her deceased husband following the alleged nightclub attack.
Mr Picton, a 36-year-old labor strategist, was allegedly shot unconscious outside a nightclub in Perth’s Northbridge on December 27 and died from his injuries on January 19.
Brodie Jake Dewar, 20, was charged with causing grievous bodily harm in connection with the incident.
In a touching tribute on LinkedIn, Mr Picton’s wife Priya Brown described their life together, raising their daughter Charlotte and working for the Labor Party.
“No matter what was going on in our lives, Tim and I would always take time to think about what a good team we were,” he said.
“Much has been said over the last few weeks about everything Tim has accomplished in his very short life.
“One part of her legacy that isn’t talked about as much is her unwavering support for women in the workplace.”
He said Mr Picton “supported women in his teams” and “gave opportunities to those who didn’t have the same experience or chances as the men around them”.
“She supported women in the primary, challenged them to take on traditionally male-dominated campaign roles, and supported women through pregnancy, maternity leave, and returning to work (often when this support was not always given),” she wrote.
Ms. Brown said her husband “understands how important it is for our daughter to grow up seeing her mother have a strong, successful career.”
Ms Brown, who works as a Partner at GRA Partners, which specializes in government relations, market research and communications consultancy, announced she would be leaving for a short time while she and her family grieve.
“Over the next few months, I will be taking some time away from work to grieve, process, and focus on supporting and accommodating Charlotte as we navigate our lives without her father,” he said.
He said he would focus his attention on his daughter, who will start school on Thursday.
“I’m devastated he won’t be with me to watch him walk in with that big backpack,” she wrote.
Mr Picton played a key role in the 2021 WA Labor state election campaign, which was a landslide victory.
His funeral was held on 23 January and was attended by Anthony Albanese, Western Australian Premier Roger Cook and South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas.
The Prime Minister said Mr Picton was “brilliant” and had a letter to deliver to his daughter Charlotte.
“I have a letter for Charlotte today that I’m going to give to Tim’s wife Priya, so that when she grows up she’ll have some personal thoughts about her father – for Tim, Charlotte was the apple of his eye,” he said.
