Jordy’s Story

We’re so pleased today to be officially launching a collaboration with the iconic Australian brand Budgy Smuggler – and releasing our very own ACRF Smugglers and Smugglettes! Turn heads whilst helping fund the boldest cancer research in Australia – shop them here.

Plus for the bravest of the brave – take on the Budgy Smuggler Winter Swim Challenge and Swim 2km over the month of August! Raise vital funds needed to help outsmart cancer. 

We’d like to thank Budgy Smuggler for this incredible opportunity and for their dedication and passion to making this collaboration a success.

Jordy Parsonage of Budgy Smuggler shares the story of how cancer has impacted her family below, and the motivation for supporting ACRF:

“To give full effect to this fundraising campaign I thought it would be most fitting to invite you all into a snapshot of our family and why this fantastic initiative is being brought to you today.

Our tight-knit family has been based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney all my life. We are a sport-focused, sunshine-loving loud and motley crew. Like all families, this life has not been without struggles of illness affecting those I hold most dear.

Our beautiful lifestyle growing up by the beaches, spending prolonged hours in the sun, at sport or in the surf has resulted in multiple encounters with Skin Cancers within our family. After having a Melanoma scare at the young age of 15, I was rudely awoken to the ruthlessness of cancer.

Suddenly as I became more educated on the different branches of
cancer, my eyes were opened to just how many people I knew, and my family loved who were affected by these brutal battles.

Within our family, our Queensland based Poppy John passed away on my birthday the same year as my scare. After fighting so bravely for such a long time the heartbreak was felt by our family near and far, such a bubbly personality taken away too early. In the years to follow, my Mum and Aunty lost one of their closest childhood friends, leaving a distinct emptiness in their own lives.

As time has progressed I’ve witnessed the lives of so many fall at the feet of such horrible cancerous diseases, with them all, a sense of hopelessness
experienced by the ones they loved most.

Earlier this year our Poppy Kelly was diagnosed with advanced Prostate Cancer. For many reading this who know my Pop, they’d be completely unaware of this. It took him some
convincing to even let me write our families story as he “didn’t want to have the spotlight on him, as there are plenty of deserving people who should have their story shared”.

My pop is my inspiration story, he has lived a full life already achieving so much. He shares a beautiful marriage with my loving Nan, he raised some crazy children, including my legend of a mother, he has taken in and housed myself, my partner and beautiful son as we found our
feet, and supported so many others in their times of need. He is selfless and brave, he is always giving back to the community, and right now he is currently working relentlessly to beat this ugly disease. He is tough and I’m so proud of him.

This overwhelming feeling over helplessness I felt early in his diagnosis was overshadowed with determination when through work with Budgy Smuggler and their generous head office team (Thanks Bj & Molly), I was given the opportunity to seek a partnership with ACRF.

I was encouraged to drive a fundraising opportunity which I was truly passionate about.

Budgy Smuggler is an iconic and uniquely Aussie brand, espousing genuine care for the community. With such a wide and varying audience such a partnership has the potential to inform and engage a new demographic with ACRF. Through the power of networking these new viewers would have access to educational resources, stats, stories and most
importantly activities to generate donations and support for the cause.
The launch of the ACRF Budgy Smugglers is a bright initiative to bring a physical and fun aspect of the fundraising world. This in combination with the Active Challenges we launch are designed to attract maximum participation and engage with social media pages and followings.

In 2020 the more who see, the more who do. I hope that you are inspired, I’m sure for many of you our family story will resonate with experiences of your own. Unfortunately, cancer affects too many. Buy your Budgys, partake in the challenges, be brave and trust in the power of networking. Share your story, continue to educate yourself, navigate through the resources available here on this site, participate in challenges and share on your social media accounts, encourage your mates to support and most importantly, donate to a cause that continues to work in order to find relief for the most ruthless of diseases.

I feel so compelled to honour those we know who have fought cancer, those who are currently fighting and those in the future that may have to undergo battles against the horrible illness. This project with ACRF, is so that through the power of research, hopefully in the future, we will have less of these sad stories to share.

To future generations of recovery.

Happy Smuggling” – Jordy Parsonage