Community & Business
19 March, 2026
Sunflower Fundraiser at Mt Molar
Over the Weekend, out at Mt Molar, The Belinda McGowan Foundation, Clifton Community Health Services (CCHS) and the Bazley family came together with the Clifton Community to raise money for a ‘cuddle bed’ for the CCHS.
On Sunday, on Morris Road at Mt Molar, people came from all over to park on a dirt road and pick sunflowers from a paddock.
With a coffee van serving brews and the Clifton Lions Club on the barbecue the scene was set for a good day in the sun, amongst the sunflowers.
Cars came throughout the day, people brought their own secateurs and borrowed some, heading back out with bundles of gleaming, yellow flowers.
Lisa Miller and the team from ABC’s ‘Back Roads’ were out interviewing the Bazleys about their involvement in the fundraiser.
The fundraiser was this year for the purchase of a ‘cuddle bed.’
A simple enough premise, the cuddle bed allows for family members to lay with their loved ones in their final moments.
Something, founder of the Belinda McGowan Foundation, Bruce McGowan only could have wished for in his final moments with his wife.
The idea of a loving embrace almost seems somewhat trivial against the behemoth effort that is the fight against cancer.
But if you talk to Bruce, he’ll disagree.
It’s those loving embraces that should be at our forefront when facing down death.
It’s an ill of contemporary societies, especially ours, to avoid death or the thought of it.
What was once a means of processing, grieving and letting go has become commercialised and stream-lined.
It’s a clinical process before anything else.
Indeed the way that our hospital beds are designed is, in this way, also very clinical.
A single bed for a single patient.
But what about who that patient loves?
Or who loves them?
That’s the thinking behind the work of The Belinda McGowan Foundation.
That there is room for compassion and closeness in end of life care.
“We’re a facilitator, the community has the heart for it, they want the cuddle bed at the Clifton Health Centre, but this is being driven by the Bazleys and we’re really honoured to be a part of it.” Bruce McGowan said on Sunday.
The Bazleys lost their son, Jim, in 2001 to cancer.
They run a free respite, Can Do Cottage on their Mt Molar property and each year host a sunflower day to raise funds for initiatives and hospital improvements like the ‘cuddle bed.’
Robin Marsh’s father is one of the patrons of the Belinda McGowan Foundation.
She was out with her husband and friends to support the fundraiser.
“I think it’s just magic, I mean have a look everyone’s smiling, it’s such a great way to fundraise.” Robin said.
Robin has also experienced loss and resonates with the mission of the Belinda McGowan Foundation.
“I’ve been with two uncles on their last nights and it was really joyous.
“They’re somewhere they know with people they know.
“These beds are a part of that, the family can sit there and hug them as they are still attached to what they need to be comfortable.
“It’s a big deal.” Robin said.
She also had praise enough to sing of Bruce.
“This man has built it from the ground up for his wife. He’s (even) designed the beds,” Robin told The Clifton Courier.
The prototype cuddle beds, first designed in 2018, have largely come from the work Bruce has put in designing and lobbying for the implementation of these beds.
CCHS and Toowoomba Hospital’s Oncology unit have one cuddle bed each.
It really was the community that showed up, plenty of volunteers from the Hospital Auxiliary, and Lions, showed up to support, huddling under the marquees to stay away from the sun.
Even 90 years old Eileen Kelly made the time to go out and support the fundraiser, spending much of the morning supervising proceedings.
Plenty of sunflowers were picked, lots of pictures were taken and smiles were as abundant as the shining, yellow flowers.
The raffle for the wheelbarrow full of goodies was won by young Johnny Hopper who was disappointed when he was told the Hahn’s would be given to his Dad.
The final amount raised is yet to be tallied by the hospital, but ‘cuddle beds’ generally cost about $20,000.
Chris Bazley wanted to thank everyone for coming out to support the fundraiser.
“Lou and I were very happy with the day, the support from everyone was great and we really enjoyed everyone’s company,” he said.
