May 2008 RDU online (pdf) - Rotary Down Under

Hawthorn says thanks for
Cambell
Cambell Gowers is lucky to be alive. Four
years ago, when he was only seven years old
a CT scan at The Royal Children’s Hospital
in Melbourne, Vic, revealed he had a giant
basilar apex aneurysm which is very rare in
children.
Surgeons at the RCH told his parents,
Belinda and Norman, that without surgery
there was a 50 per cent chance Cambell
would die, with surgery he had a 50 per
cent chance of survival.
Due to the risk involved in the surgery,
it was performed at the Royal Melbourne
Hospital where there was angiographic
expertise; the team included Mr Kevin So,
a skilled vascular neurosurgeon from the
RMH, RCH neurosurgeon Ms Wirginia
Maixner and the RCH anaesthetic team.
Cambell suffered a stroke on the operating
table and was stabilised, but surgeons told
his parents they did not expect him to
pull through. They were amazed when he
woke up.
However, 24 hours later he was rushed
back to surgery at RCH where Ms Maixner
removed bone from his head to relieve
pressure due to complications from the
stroke. He remained in a drug-induced
coma for several weeks.
When he woke he was unable to walk
or feed himself and it was still unknown
what the long term effects of the stroke
would be.
Surgeons left off part of the bone flap to
allow the swelling of his brain to subside.
He wore a specially made helmet to protect
his head and was confined to a wheelchair.
Then in another setback he began having
breathing difficulties and spent five days
on a ventilator in intensive care. He was
discharged back to the ward in time to
celebrate his eighth birthday.
Still without the bone flap on his skull for
several weeks, he was allowed to go home
and even permitted to return to school for
30 minutes a day, with his mother close by.
Cambell’s recovery has amazed his
doctors – he had his final rehabilitation
visit to the eye clinic last week. He’s a sports
nut and is now playing football, cricket and
basketball again.
Cambell’s grandfather, Past President
John Gowers and his colleagues at the
THIS ROTARY WORLD
Professor Wirginia Maixner, neurosurgeon at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, with Cambell Gowers, his
grandfather, PP John Gowers, of the Rotary Club of Hawthorn, Vic, and District Governor John Davis.
Rotary Club of Hawthorn, Vic, were so
proud of Cambell’s determination and so
impressed with his care that they decided
to help the hospital in a more tangible
way.
Cambell visited the RCH in October
and, on behalf of Rotary, his grandfather
pledged a donation of $200,000 to the
RCH Children’s Neuroscience Centre
where Cambell’s life was saved.
Cambell and John will also attach a
plaque in the ward in recognition of
Rotary’s support.
According to John, just on $152,000
of the $200,000 pledge has been raised,
thanks to support from District 9800,
which has adopted it as a District project,
along with support from corporate and
individual donations.
“Cambell now enjoys a normal healthy
lifestyle – playing football, basketball,
cricket, etc,” John said.
“His only slight deficiency is a lack of left
peripheral vision. However unless one was
aware of it, it would be very hard to detect.” ■
Eaglehawk gets skates on
The Rotary Club of Eaglehawk, Vic, has
proudly opened the McKern Skate Park
in Canterbury Park, Eaglehawk, a project
that took six years to bring to fruition.
It began as an idea in 2001, followed
by consultation and discussions with the
young people of the community and local
secondary college about the need for a
skate park, what type of park and where it
should be built.
The young people were keen on the
idea and were adamant a park was needed,
but not just any park; they wanted a top
class park that was suitable for learners
and less experienced skaters, but would
also challenge the top class skaters. They
also wanted a park that could cater for
competitions.
They chose a perfect site that would
bring them into close contact with the
community – some unused parkland
wedged between the YMCA public pool
and Gym, the Canterbury Gardens, the
football/cricket ground, a bowls club and
a lake. It was going to be a hard sell to the
Council and Community.
The City of Greater Bendigo Council
was approached and after some lengthy
and at times difficult negotiations, the
Council finally agreed to the project at the
preferred site. There were several public
meetings and the general community
attitude was supportive.
The next step was to come up with a
suitable design. The top skate park design
company in Australia, Convic Design, was
asked to come to Bendigo and consult
with the young people on the design they
wanted.
Rotary Down Under, May 2008–––35