The Brittany Abraham I met the day before she died was confident and poised

Brittany Abraham was there to cheer on her partner of six years, Gunnedah Red Devil Jack Inder, whom she met when they both studied at the University of New England (UNE).

The 24-year-old told me that she did a bachelor of nursing degree and a bachelor of psychological science degree, with honours in psychology, at UNE, and was now doing her PhD in psychology at the Armidale-based university.

At UNE, Abraham - an Indigenous woman - was also an associate lecturer at the Oorala Aboriginal Centre and a lecturer in Indigenous Knowledges.

On top of all that, she tutored students in a number of health-related degrees including nursing and psychology. She was also the founder, creator and face of Unlax Candles, which is marketed as hand-poured 100 per cent soy candles.

I complimented Abraham on her accomplishments, remarking that she had achieved so much for someone so young. Outwardly, at least, she did not luxuriate in the praise.

"Yeah, yep," she replied, when I said that she must be excited about the future.

Less than 24 hours later, at about noon on Sunday, March 24, this beautiful and intelligent high achiever - who radiated confidence and poise - died when the Mitsubishi Triton she was a passenger in crashed into an Iveco truck on the Kamilaroi Highway at Curlewis.

The Crash Investigation Unit is looking into the circumstances surrounding the crash.

On Tuesday, UNE issued a statement in which it described Abraham - who hailed from Sydney but had lived at Breeza with Inder - as an "inspirational" academic.

"Britt was a much-loved early career academic who had a huge involvement in the UNE community," it said.

In 2017, Abraham arrived at UNE to study nursing after being inspired by an intensive care nurse who looked after her when, two years earlier, she was admitted to Randwick Children's Hospital in Sydney after suffering a serious spinal injury in a high-speed tubing accident on water.

In a 2020 interview with the GO Foundation, she said: "In a moment, I went from spending the afternoon taking turns on the innertube with extended family at my uncle's 80th birthday, to being in hospital staring at the ceiling [and] being told I would be in a wheelchair and not walking.

"That was it for me. I was paralysed from the neck down."

When the tubing accident occurred, Abraham - who was not left wheelchair-bound - had just commenced year 10 at Sydney's Loreto Normanhurst as one of the GO Foundation's founding scholars.

Nine years later, on a temperate autumn day, she told me that she planned to continue lecturing at UNE upon completing her doctorate. Her research was focused on mental health and wellbeing in the North West.

"So, improving mental health and wellbeing in rural communities," she said.

The loss of Brittany Abraham is clearly the region's loss.