Olivia’s Lunch

Over the past 23 years, BGS Old Boy Brett Clark ’85 has revolutionised the pharmaceutical industry in Australia. When he launched epharmacy.com.au in 2000, it was the only online pharmaceutical retailer in the country. Today, Brett is the managing partner of ePharmacy and Chemist Warehouse stores in Queensland and Northern NSW.

Brett said BGS instilled in him the belief that anything was possible with hard work and determination. By the age of 22, Brett had met his wife Maria. They share three children, with one child, Olivia, sadly passing on at just six days of age. Their girls were all born prematurely at the Mater Hospital in Brisbane.

In 2001, when Olivia was born prematurely, she was cared for in the Mater Neonatal Critical Care Unit (NCCU). In her memory, Brett and Maria have been raising vital funds for the Mater Foundation since 2003 through an event they named ‘Olivia’s Lunch’.

Brett and Maria had a desire to turn their tragedy into something positive. The Clark family wanted to help other parents of premature babies to take them home safely. They chose to support the Mater Little Miracles program. Every year more than 2000 premature babies from all over Queensland arrive at the Mater to receive around the clock specialist care from the team in the NCCU. The program invests in lifesaving research, care and equipment.

Although the Clark family lost their baby Olivia, Maria and Brett have two other beautiful Mater Little Miracles, Chelsea and Maddy. Olivia’s older sister Chelsea was born prematurely at 29 weeks, weighing just 661 grams. She is now 24 years old and has graduated from The University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Communication/Journalism.

Olivia’s younger sister Maddy was also born prematurely at 29 weeks and weighed 1100 grams. Maddy is now 20 and is studying Physiotherapy at UQ. Both girls have always been involved in fundraising in memory of their sister.

In memory of Olivia, the Clark family have raised over $1.8 million to help the Mater’s Neonatal Critical Care Unit and, more recently, Catherine’s House – a world-class perinatal mental health facility supporting mothers and families experiencing mental health issues around the time of the birth of their baby.

In 2022, Olivia’s lunch raised more than $250,000 from 400 guests who attended the event to support the development of Catherine’s House.

Over the years, the Clark family has become more involved with the Mater Foundation. As Patrons, both Brett and Maria are extremely proud of the work they have achieved to help give back to the charity.

Brett’s contribution to not-for-profit initiatives is not limited to the Mater Foundation. He served on the Board of the Queensland Ballet for 10 years up to 2019, with the last six as Chair. During his tenure as Chair, the company underwent remarkable business and box office growth. He steered the company through a period of business transformation and strategic change, including progressing Queensland Ballet’s two major infrastructure projects: the Queensland Ballet Academy and the redevelopment of the Thomas Dixon Centre.

At the end of 2019, Brett was appointed to the Queensland Rugby Union (QRU) Board. Brett has enjoyed a lifelong connection to rugby and played at BGS. During his tenure at QRU, he has established the inaugural QRU Foundation, the philanthropic branch of the business supporting rugby in Queensland. It has raised more than $1.5 million in its first six months of existence. In March 2022, Brett was appointed as Chairman of QRU.

Most recently, Brett was appointed to the board of the Organising Committee Board for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.