Flowers for Effie to help young brain tumour sufferer

By Sophie Baldwin

Apr 5, 2024

For a great cause: 86K for a Cure participants who banded together in Bunnaloo on Good Friday to raise money for brain tumour sufferer Effie Garden included (back from left) Olivia Gardiner, Cara Rinaldi, Matilda Gardiner, Ruby Berryman, Thea Rinaldi and Molly Matera and (front from left) Tom Rinaldi, Poppy Berryman and Grace Howarth. Flowers are a special part of Effie’s life as her favourite thing has always been to find pretty flowers and bring them inside to give them water. Photo: Sophie Baldwin

There is nothing like some good old-fashioned community support to bring a smile to your face when the chips are down.

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And for Dom, Rosie, Effie and Safa Garden from Bunnaloo, that is exactly what happened when their local community came out in droves on Good Friday and ran, walked and rode bikes to raise $3937.70 for the Children’s Cancer Institute — as part of 86K for a Cure.

On September 10 last year a mass was found in little Effie’s brain.

The devastated family were told Effie had a very nasty Diffuse Midline Glioma (DMG) brain tumour and only 9-12 months to live, with the only treatment option being radiation therapy.

Loving family: Dom Garden holding Safa, and wife Rosie holding Effie outside the Sydney Children’s Hospital in Randwick.

Effie is just four years old and her favourite thing has always been to find pretty flowers and bring them inside for a drink of water.

Her love of flowers inspired the family to set up a fundraising page @flowers_for_effie on Instagram.

With Dom pledging to pick a flower every day in March and walk 86km in honour of his daughter, all funds raised under team Flowers for Effie were given to Levi’s Project – a team dedicated to raising funds for research and clinical trials for children with DMG/DIPG.

Effie is currently participating in a CAR-T trial funded by Levi’s Project.

With an original target of $15,000, throughout March, Dom along with the help of the community, friends and family raised a staggering $51037 via team Flowers for Effie.

Up in joy: The Bunnaloo community came together to raise $3937.70 on Good Friday for the Children’s Cancer Institute’s 86K for a Cure to help young Effie Garden, who has a brain tumour. Photo: Sophie Baldwin

Organisers of the run, siblings Suzy and Luke Barlow, said they were blown away by the community support, which saw over 70 people make their way to the start line at the Five Mile boat ramp.

“This little gathering is not only a beautiful show of the love the community has for this special family, but also the strength and desire to do every little thing we can to help Effie,” Suzy said.

“We are a very close community and people really pull together.”

Proud to help out: Participants Sue, Ryan, Hannah and Kate Mulcahy, and Alex May (back right). Photo: Supplied

With 100 donated gerbras, men, women and children took on the challenge, flowers in hand, and returned back to the boat ramp for breakfast.

Bakehouse 151 donated the bread and pledged their public surcharge to the cause (over $1000), while Echuca Meats donated the bacon, and the eggs were a community donation from anyone who had chooks.

For additional enticement, Luke pledged to donate $2 for every kilometre completed on the day.

Community member Alice Rinaldi said turning out to support the family was the least she could do, while Sue Mulcahy went one step further: she joined the 86km cause, walked 162km and raised $4303 along the way.

Supporting the cause: Run organisers Suzy Barlow with daughter Molly and brother Luke. Photo: Sophie Baldwin

Dom and Rosie said the family could not thank the community enough for everything they had done.

“Our community is our safety net and raising funds for childhood cancer is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what they have done for us, and we are so lucky to have them in our lives,” they said.

Dom’s aunt Katrina Shirley who also participated in the walk, said she and the family were eternally grateful for the support.

“Effie’s involvement in the brain cancer research program has given her extra quality time with her family and days like today have given the family some much-needed courage and resilience.

“Dom and Rosie know many other families are going through their own difficulties and today’s walk helps them to give back to brain cancer research so other children can benefit,” Katrina said.