COMMUNITY CAUSE
Be Just Like Jack – and get the most out of life By Paul Robinson
J
ack Duffy is a tough customer. The 11-year-old has cerebral palsy spastic quadriplegia – which means he can’t walk, talk or eat by himself. But according to his dad, Jack understands everything and doesn’t think his condition should get in the way of his making the most out of what life has to offer. Thanks to his family and the volunteers at Just Like Jack, he doesn’t have to miss out on all the good stuff. Just Like Jack is a volunteer group set up by Jack’s parents, Chris and Erin Duffy, last year. It’s dedicated to helping special needs kids like Jack have a few fun adventures and get the best out of life, despite their physical condition. So far they’ve raised more than $100,000 for not-forprofit organisations. As with most parents of special needs children, Chris and Erin weren’t really prepared for what life with Jack would entail. “My wife and I both went to the Defence Academy,” recalls Chris. “In that environment it’s about being fit and healthy and strong. We were pretty successful, but had never had much to do with the special needs community. We had three kids, but when Jack came along it was fairly confronting and quite a challenge for us. It took us a BUSINESS & FRANCHISE BUYER • Vol.4 #2
while to come to grips with his issues, but we realised there are a lot of kids much worse off.” Their shared military background likely made them better equipped than many to face the challenge. “Erin and I had been on operational deployments,” says Chris. “We’d had experience in dealing with different kinds of challenges in stressful environments, and facing it together also helped a lot. Our training held us in good stead for meeting these challenges. But you really can’t prepare for it. It knocked us on our bums for a while, but it’s worked out that our lives are 1000 per cent better for the experience.” Jack’s first big adventure was back in 2009 when he and
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