If the expression ‘only rainbows after rain’ rings true, then Rosie Scott and Dominic Garden have weathered a storm.
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The Thule couple’s vision of 14 Watson St began many years ago, when Rosie’s inspiration first struck.
Campaspe Shire Council first put the building out for tender in 2021, and while Rosie missed it, no applicants were successful.
“I remember seeing this building and always thinking, ‘if I could open a café anywhere, it would be here’,” she said.
“I started working on my business plan ... I put a vision board and everything for it.
“They did open the tender (again) in 2023, and we applied then.”
The couple were successful, but what should have been a joyous time for their family quickly shifted.
Their four-year-old daughter, Effie, was diagnosed with an incurable diffuse midline glioma brain tumour.
“They offered us the tenancy here, and then we were getting ready to sign it,” Dom said.
“Our daughter had been having these headaches, been sick, and we took her into the hospital here, and they did a scan.
“We immediately knew that she had a brain tumour.”
The family, including Effie’s now three-year-old sister Safa, put their Watson St Pavilion plans on hold as they dealt with a tragic set of circumstances.
Upon hearing the news, council told the family not to worry about their tenancy for a year while they focused on Effie’s health.
“They virtually said, ‘we don’t need to hear from you for 12 months’,” Dom said.
“Council’s been incredible, they’ve been so supportive.”
While a temporary tenant utilised the space during the summer of 2023-24, the family faced tremendous tests of strength, spending significant periods of time away from home for Effie’s treatments.
Among the challenges was the discovery of a second tumour, as well as opting for a clinical trial in Sydney.
Funding for the trial was supported by Levi’s Project, a charity created in honour of eight-year-old Levi Wheeler, who died in 2018 from diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma.
“The disease is incurable, they said her prognosis was nine to 12 months, hers was actually six to nine months, we found out later on,” Dom said.
“The five-year survival rate was less than one per cent.
“(The trial) was brand new to Australia ... for the first few patients, they run the trial at a real minimum for safety.
“Effie couldn’t get a full dose of this particular trial, but if Kath (Levi’s mum) hadn’t done what she’d done, we wouldn’t have even had that opportunity.”
Despite the hospital visits and being hundreds of kilometres from home in the southern NSW town of Thule, the time spent in Sydney together proved to be invaluable.
The family had heeded the heartbreaking advice offered by Effie’s doctor when they were first told of the severity of Effie’s condition.
“We got very special memories out of going up there,” Dom said.
“It’s horrible to hear, but what the oncologist said to us on the day they diagnosed Effie is that, ‘you go home and make memories’.
“Being in Sydney was that for us, or for me anyway. It was a special time.”
During their time north, they raised funds for Levi’s Project, with Dom running 86km in March 2024 for the cause.
The community rallied around ‘Flowers for Effie’, raising more than $50,000, equivalent to the cost of Effie’s trial.
This theme of fundraising has carried on into the couple’s business, Watson St Pavilion.
Every month, the sales of their pink milkshakes — Effie’s favourite — go to a different charity, kicking off with $1400 raised for Levi’s Project in September.
“You go through something like this, and you get worried that people will be too scared to say your child’s name in front of you, or ask about it,” Rosie said.
“It’s been so nice to hear people say her name.
“Even, some of them have said, ‘I don’t want a milkshake, but can I just donate money?’
“It opens the door to so many conversations, and so much care and empathy and kindness.”
The time and energy that Rosie put into planning Watson St Pavilion was a welcome outlet during a tumultuous two years.
Effie sadly passed away in December 2024, but her family continue to honour her every single day, especially through the café.
“It was really good to have a project,” Rosie said.
“Effie was so keen on seeing this open ... we’d just be driving past and manifesting.
“Effie would always say, ‘Don’t worry Mum, it’s going to be ours, you just have to be patient. It will be our little café one day.’”
Looking around Watson St Pavilion, Rosie and Effie’s manifestations have been realised.
“We’re immensely proud of this space,” Dom said.
“Sometimes you wonder how we managed to do it.
“All of this is Rosie’s vision.”