Six months ago Stanwell Park couple Brendon and Cathleen Cowie’s prayers were answered when they welcomed their long hoped for child into the world.
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Tragically, the beautiful and bubbly young mum’s time with her son Ryan was cut short after she collapsed and died at a church meeting on October 27.
The northern suburbs community has rallied around Cat’s devastated husband and son, preparing meals, washing clothes and offering other assistance. An online fundraiser has raised over $83,000 in seven days.
Brendon’s brother Aaron Cowie – married to Cat’s sister Carolyn – said the close-knit family was in shock over the 35-year-old gym instructor’s sudden death.
‘’She just collapsed and it was over,’’ Mr Cowie said. ‘’The doctors said she had an aneurysm in her aorta.
‘’We’ve shed a lot of tears and we’re all in shock but Brendon is pulling it together for Ryan and doing all he can to make his little boy happy.
‘’He’s missing his mum – she was still breastfeeding so he’s had to go on the bottle – and he just laughs when he looks at her photos, and goes quiet when the photos are taken away.
‘’They tried for four years to have a baby and they finally got Ryan and then she passed away. She was a brilliant mum.’’
Mr Cowie said the pair were ‘’teenage sweethearts’’ who had been inseparable since they met through church 15 years ago.
Mr Cowie met his wife Carolyn at their wedding eight years ago. ‘’Her and Cat were really close – they did everything together,’’ he said.
Brendon’s dedication to Cat was especially evident in his carefully constructed proposal. He took her up in a helicopter flight and as they flew over Stanwell Park beach, his friends held up around 50 surfboards spelling out ‘Marry me’. The answer was never in doubt.
In a post on social media, Brendon last week mourned the loss of his ‘’best friend, soul mate and wife.’’
‘’You completed me, brought the best out of me and loved me so much for who I am,’’ he wrote. ‘’You were an amazing mother to our son Ryan, he looks everywhere for you. When he's old enough I'll teach him to look up to heaven and always say I love you mummy.
‘’And for me sweety I'll always think of you wherever I look, and I'll meet you again someday. I love you and will never forget you.’’
Mr Cowie said his brother had been overwhelmed by the level of support.
‘’The outpouring of support is testament to the type of person Cat was,’’ he said.
‘’She loved helping people and was very involved with the church – the day she passed away she was becoming a minister of the church.’’
Cat’s funeral service will be held on Tuesday at 9.30am at the Tops Conference Centre.
