Community & Business
10 October, 2025
Bloke walks to Toowoomba
“The Bloke from Gundy” Dave Batterham has walked a wheelbarrow from Goombungee to Toowoomba in memory of his late wife Judi to raise funds for the establishment of a Regional Cancer Centre in Toowoomba.
The walk began just before 5.30am on a chilly Saturday morning at the Iron Man statue in Goombungee.
Decked out in a pink medical gown, the ‘Bloke from Gundy’ did a double-check on his supplies with son Curt, who lives in Goombungee, and got underway on the seven-hour long journey to the Toowoomba Hospital.
Dave brought along a wheelbarrow, with messages of support inscribed in white marker. Friend Leonie Brassey from St. George accompanied him dressed as a doctor on a bike, and son Curt and daughter-in law Simmone, followed in support in their vehicle down Goombungee Meringandan road.
Upon arrival at Meringandan proper, Dave received support from a local man, Renn Thwaites who volunteered to push the wheelbarrow up the steep Main Street during his morning run.
Along the way, Dave stopped several times at points along the route to receive donations from passers-by.
Whatever brief annoyance passing drivers on the Goombungee-Meringandan Road may have felt, it was surpassed by the novelty of the event, and the good cause it was going towards.
It’s not the first long physical effort, Dave has made for the nation’s health - in 2023 he rode 2,000 from his Goondiwindi home to Mount Isa to raise funds for Dementia Australia.
At 12.45pm, he reached his intended destination at the Toowoomba Hospital, tired, but happy.
If you’d like to support Dave’s efforts to help build a Regional Cancer Care, head to: https://www.toowoombahospitalfoundation.org.au/event/the-great-wheelbarrow-run-2025/home
