Son’s memory lives on through Liz Dawes’ tireless charity work

LIZ Dawes changed her life to honour that of her son, who lost his to brain cancer as a teenager.

Pride of Australia community spirit award nominee Liz Dawes. Liz Dawes set up the Robert Connor Dawes brain cancer foundation after her son Connor, 17, died of the illness a few years ago. They have a fun run fundraiser which goes along the route he used to run and is now in it's third year. Picture: Jason Sammon Wednesday 10th June 2015

LIZ Dawes changed her life to honour that of her son, who lost his to brain cancer as a teenager.

Mrs Dawes hates that brain cancer robbed 17-year-old Connor of life, and robbed her of Connor, and recalls one moment sitting with him in hospital before he lost his battle, his tumour the size of an orange.

“I said to Connor, ‘I wish it was me — I’ve had you three beautiful children, I’ve done my job here’,” she remembers.

“And he said, ‘Mum, I don’t want you to go through this’.”

She dreams of a time no one else will have to, that’s why she quit her job and has spent the past two years working tirelessly to set up the Robert Connor Dawes Foundation.

Mrs Dawes, nominated for a Pride of Australia award, has already raised more than $700,000 for brain cancer research, care and development.

And with a few big names potentially joining the annual Connor’s Run in September, including Prime Minister Tony Abbott and The Bachelor’s Sam Wood, more will be raised.

The charity funds a PhD scholarship at Monash University’s brain cancer discovery collaborative and a new Royal Children’s Hospital head of neuro oncology position.

Brain cancer is the biggest cancer killer of young people.

“He wasn’t an old person with a tired heart, he was a young beautiful person,” Mrs Dawes said.

“I do believe anything we can do is worth it.”

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