About Liz
A savvy, creative businesswoman who is passionate about helping her community, Liz Dawes OAM founded the Robert Connor Dawes (RCD) Foundation in 2013 after she lost her 18-year-old son, Connor, to brain cancer. Nine years on, Liz has grown the charity to be the largest paediatric brain cancer foundation in Australia.
As CEO and Chairwoman of the board, Liz has grown the RCD Foundation’s flagship event, Connor’s Run, to become the country’s biggest campaign for paediatric brain cancer, with over $7.7 million raised to date. Liz has inspired tens of thousands of participants across Australia and the United States to engage in the RCD Foundation’s additional events and campaigns: Go Grey in May; Connor’s Erg; Kicking Goals for Brain Cancer; and the Very Merry Christmas Market. Inspired by Connor, Liz has developed a national Music Therapy program for children undergoing brain cancer treatment, launched a paediatric brain cancer podcast - Making Waves, and reimagined traditional methods of fundraising through the development of an online trivia game, Birdbrain.
Liz has been crucial in lobbying the Federal Government to secure funding for paediatric brain cancer, which kills more young people than any other disease. Liz has also participated in round tables with the top minds in paediatric brain cancer globally and was behind the AIM Brain Project (co-funded by the Federal Government), which ensures every child diagnosed in Australia and New Zealand has access to world-class genomics testing technology. The AIM Brain project is now becoming a standard of care for testing every child’s tumour diagnosed and paving the way for better treatment protocols.
In acknowledgement of her efforts, Liz was awarded an Order of Australia Medal (OAM) in 2022, was a nominee for Australian of the Year in 2017, named in the AFR’s 100 Women of Influence in 2018, recognised as Electoral Division of Goldstein’s Local Hero in 2016, and received the Australia Day Award for Bayside Citizen of the Year in 2015.
Liz is an Australian-American originally from a small town in Wisconsin USA, where she completed a Bachelor of Science majoring in Finance and Marketing at the University of Wisconsin. Liz went on to hold a number of high profile roles leading multi-million dollar sales and marketing accounts across the United States, before eventually moving to New Zealand, and finally Melbourne in 1999.
While raising three young children, Liz founded her own creative fundraising business, Art by Kids, and managed fundraising initiatives for the American Women’s Auxiliary, raising significant funds for the Royal Children’s Hospital. But in October 2011, Liz’s world was turned upside down with the brain cancer diagnosis of her eldest son, Connor, who was just 17 year old at the time. For the 16 months that followed, Connor gave it his all, as his brilliant mind, strong body, and kind heart faced off against an Ependymoma, before his battle came to an end on April 20, 2013.
Liz has turned her greatest tragedy into her greatest purpose, and has worked tirelessly in Connor’s name every day since. Liz is determined to change the odds for young people facing brain cancer, and to ensure no family has to go through what hers did. In doing so, Liz has inspired thousands of people to get behind this cause and make a real difference to this once relatively unknown disease. Now, Liz believes anyone can utilise the coping and business strategies she’s mastered, whether they've lived through such tragedy or not.