Behind the JAACS...is Jodie, Andrew, Andrew and Cindy
Jodie
Is married to Andrew and the mother of three wonderful kids. She is a nurse by profession, having turned her hand in the past to hair dressing, teaching and lab work. Jodie is the loudest, proudest parent and biggest advocate for nurses in the health care system. Anyone would not get between Jodie and her kids anymore than they would try to steal cubs off a momma grizzly! She is one of the kindest, proudest most caring people that you will ever meet, and Andrew Monk was lucky enough to be best man at Andrew and Jodie’s wedding. She was there at the start when JAACS was born.
Sadly, Jodie collapsed at work a couple of years ago (in an emergency department, what a crowd pleaser! Still there are worse places to fall over.) This was her first inkling that she had multiple sclerosis, a disease that has turned her life upside down. Jodie now needs a wheelchair to get around and has a carer look after her 24 hours a day. She has had to stop her beloved nursing and is the reason why we want to donate $1 from the sale of every JAACS candle to funding the provision of more MS nurses in Australia.
Andrew
Andrew is married to Jodie and the proud dad of three wonderful kids. He is a keen archer, fisherman and golfer. Andrew first met Andrew Monk when they were both just 16 and 17 years old on Andrew Monk’s first night in the army. They have been firm friends ever since.
Andrew’s superpower is common sense. He is in high demand in heavy industry for exactly this reason, as he has the uncanny knack of finding problems in a refinery by actually going outside and seeing where the pipes go, instead of studying plans and scratching his head about why the refinery isn’t doing what it’s told, even though the plans say the pipes should go here! He is the calming Yin to Andrew Monk’s wild Yang which has led to some animated discussions where Andrew has proved to Andrew Monk that pineapples don’t grow on trees, but trees grow from the top up not the bottom up and that you can’t just raise the height of a dam wall to increase storage capacity.
Andrew is the reason that JAACS products are not just wonderful to look at and smell great but are as safe as they can be as well.
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Andrew Monk
Andrew grew up in Canberra in the suburbs, and his grandma used to live just streets away from Cindy’s house when was growing up, even though they didn’t meet until Andrew was 49 years old. Cindy and Andrew tied the knot in September 2022. He is dad to four wonderful kids, two that he caused and two that he didn’t. He is the proudest dad in the world and a Christmas nut. In fact, if he could push Santa off his roof and take his job he would. He also loves dogs and is a sucker for good fart joke.
Andrew has been in the army, in the railway, an accounts clerk for a newspaper and pharmacist before he has tried his hand at candle making. He loves making candles as he finds that all those pretty colors, the wonderful smells and the beautiful, finished product are a joy to work with. He also loves the idea that something he is making brings other people joy..
Cindy Monk
Cindy grew up in Canberra and lived there until she felt the irresistible pull of the sunshine state in 2017. She is married to Andrew and the mother, Queen, and undisputed lioness of the family. Just like a lioness she looks all sleek and beautiful but if danger threatens anyone of her four kids, then just watch out cause this momma cat has claws and really big teeth! Dogs, rainbows, fairies, small children, and butterflies make her roll over and purr though.
Cindy has worked in the government, the bank and is currently a support worker running her own business and in high demand. She cares so much and is the most empathic person you will ever meet. She is also a bit of a hippy and majorly into self-improvement through meditation, mirror work, crystals, aromatherapy, and self-reflection. She is the reason JAACS exists as a business at all as without her we would not have social media, chakra candles, any of the current scent combinations, melts, diffusers, or room sprays. She keeps Andrew’s feet on the ground when his dreams are in the clouds, provides inspiration for new products and there is no way that Andrew Monk could have done any of this without her. Take a bow Cindy.