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TWO OF US
Sydney Morning Herald
Nov 9 2012
Australia
Date November 10, 2012
Interviews by Rosemarie Milsom
British-born social entrepreneur and environmentalist Jon Dee, 48,
met Australian tennis star Pat Cash, 47, in London during the charity
project Rock Aid Armenia in 1990. Together, they created Planet Ark
and have launched the online advocacy group Do Something!.
Jon's story I was talking to [Deep Purple lead singer] Ian Gillan
about The Earthquake Album, which I was putting together to raise
money after the devastating 1988 Armenian earthquake. He said,
"A friend of mine, Pat Cash the tennis player, is a pretty good
guitarist. You should get him and John McEnroe to play."
He introduced us at the Hard Rock Cafe at one of the Wimbledon bashes.
We hit it off. We're both really big rock fans and the music initially
brought us together. Pat invited me to his place in Fulham for dinner.
He'd just been knocked out of Wimbledon and he said, "I've got a case
of beer and I'm heading overseas, so I need to finish it."
We ate pizza and got extraordinarily drunk. He really opened up to
me about what his passions were and what we found was that we had a
couple of things in common: we loved our music and we were both really
worried about the environment. As we talked, we decided to set up an
environmental group and it was actually Pat's idea to start Planet
Ark in Australia. I came up with the name.
Advertisement
People have no idea about the charitable side to Pat. He is very
passionate and well informed about issues, but he plays that down.
He's very modest. He has the Pat Cash Foundation and he's been putting
money into campaigns when we've struggled to get funding. The chair
I'm sitting on, all the desks in our office, Pat paid for everything.
When we really needed it, Pat stepped up to the plate. For example,
Elle Macpherson was going to do an ad for us and then she got
pneumonia, so we suddenly found ourselves without a front person for
the Christmas card recycling campaign. Pat got on the phone to Kylie
Minogue and, bang, the next day I'm filming her in London. I've always
known I could rely on him no matter what else was going on for him.
I don't know how Pat keeps up with the pace of his life; he lives on
a plane. He's playing in the Champions Tour and does the Open Court
tennis show for CNN. He's still very fit. He used to worry a lot about
the stress I was under and has always told me to take better care of
myself. He's helped me find a better balance. Though he travels a lot,
Pat has been a real hands-on father [to Mia, 28, Daniel, 26, and twin
boys Shannon and Jett, 18]. I learnt a lot from him on that front.
We were both 27 when we started Planet Ark and we were hard-drinking,
rock'n'roll types. Since then we've settled into fatherhood and we've
grown older together and developed as men. I love that. When we are
together and no one else is around, we have really deep conversations.
We're very busy fathers who travel a lot, so we talk about our kids
and achieving a better life balance.
I had my kids [Estelle, 9, and Claudia, 5] later in life and Pat's now
a grandfather to beautiful Talia, 2. When I had my first child, Pat
was great with advice. He was this font of wisdom and I could ask him
anything. When he comes and stays at our place in the Blue Mountains
[west of Sydney], he has a very special friendship with Estelle.
He's been my confidant for 21 years, not just my charity partner. I
just know that without Pat, I wouldn't have been able to do so many
of the things I've done. He's brought out the best in me. That night
in Fulham changed my life. Thank goodness for Stella Artois.
Pat's story I've been worried about Jon at times; he takes on way too
much. We were in London once for a TV ad that we were making with
Kylie Minogue. He barely slept for the three days he was there. He
was a wreck.
He finds it hard to say no, but I think his girls have helped him slow
down. He's learnt to delegate, but he still wants everything to be
perfect. You won't find anyone who works harder. There's also been a
lot of financial stress - it was a few years before he got a decent
wage at Planet Ark. For a while there, I'd buy him food and shove
some cash in his pocket. He'd say, "No, no, no", and I'd say, "Eat!"
Eventually I said, "Will you just get a friggin' wage!" He'd rather
starve and put money into a campaign.
He's put his commitment to the cause before everything else at times,
especially his health. There was a frightening incident a few years ago
when Jon collapsed in the middle of a meeting and got carried away in
an ambulance. He was completely exhausted. It was a big wake-up call.
I've had horrendous depression over the years and a lot of it was
linked with the pressure of everything that was going on in my life:
tennis and family stress. Jon has always been there to support me
and I trust him completely. At the end of my divorce [to Emily Bendit
in 2002], when I was struggling financially and emotionally, Jon was
a real help. He gave me great advice, not just about personal stuff
but on new business ideas and new directions.
Jon's the powerhouse behind what we do and I think it's time for me
to step up and do a bit more. I just feel if you can help people,
why not? Ever since I was 16, I've been involved in charity work
but there are only so many autographs and tennis racquets you can
donate. Jon and I are still doing fund-raising work in Armenia -
unfinished business - and that's now part of Do Something!, which
has been a massive project to get off the ground. It couldn't have
happened without Jon's passion and commitment.
When he said he wanted to become an Australian citizen, I said,
"Mate, Australia would be honoured to have you." When he was named NSW
Australian of the Year [in 2010], it was a great moment. He deserved
the recognition and I felt really, really proud of him.
I really wanted to attend [the award presentation] but was playing
in an overseas tennis tournament. But our friendship has always been
that way. A couple of months might pass and we don't talk because
I'm all over the place, especially when Wimbledon's on and I've got
TV commitments. But it's always so good to see him and catch up.
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/two-of-us-20121105-28stu.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Sydney Morning Herald
Nov 9 2012
Australia
Date November 10, 2012
Interviews by Rosemarie Milsom
British-born social entrepreneur and environmentalist Jon Dee, 48,
met Australian tennis star Pat Cash, 47, in London during the charity
project Rock Aid Armenia in 1990. Together, they created Planet Ark
and have launched the online advocacy group Do Something!.
Jon's story I was talking to [Deep Purple lead singer] Ian Gillan
about The Earthquake Album, which I was putting together to raise
money after the devastating 1988 Armenian earthquake. He said,
"A friend of mine, Pat Cash the tennis player, is a pretty good
guitarist. You should get him and John McEnroe to play."
He introduced us at the Hard Rock Cafe at one of the Wimbledon bashes.
We hit it off. We're both really big rock fans and the music initially
brought us together. Pat invited me to his place in Fulham for dinner.
He'd just been knocked out of Wimbledon and he said, "I've got a case
of beer and I'm heading overseas, so I need to finish it."
We ate pizza and got extraordinarily drunk. He really opened up to
me about what his passions were and what we found was that we had a
couple of things in common: we loved our music and we were both really
worried about the environment. As we talked, we decided to set up an
environmental group and it was actually Pat's idea to start Planet
Ark in Australia. I came up with the name.
Advertisement
People have no idea about the charitable side to Pat. He is very
passionate and well informed about issues, but he plays that down.
He's very modest. He has the Pat Cash Foundation and he's been putting
money into campaigns when we've struggled to get funding. The chair
I'm sitting on, all the desks in our office, Pat paid for everything.
When we really needed it, Pat stepped up to the plate. For example,
Elle Macpherson was going to do an ad for us and then she got
pneumonia, so we suddenly found ourselves without a front person for
the Christmas card recycling campaign. Pat got on the phone to Kylie
Minogue and, bang, the next day I'm filming her in London. I've always
known I could rely on him no matter what else was going on for him.
I don't know how Pat keeps up with the pace of his life; he lives on
a plane. He's playing in the Champions Tour and does the Open Court
tennis show for CNN. He's still very fit. He used to worry a lot about
the stress I was under and has always told me to take better care of
myself. He's helped me find a better balance. Though he travels a lot,
Pat has been a real hands-on father [to Mia, 28, Daniel, 26, and twin
boys Shannon and Jett, 18]. I learnt a lot from him on that front.
We were both 27 when we started Planet Ark and we were hard-drinking,
rock'n'roll types. Since then we've settled into fatherhood and we've
grown older together and developed as men. I love that. When we are
together and no one else is around, we have really deep conversations.
We're very busy fathers who travel a lot, so we talk about our kids
and achieving a better life balance.
I had my kids [Estelle, 9, and Claudia, 5] later in life and Pat's now
a grandfather to beautiful Talia, 2. When I had my first child, Pat
was great with advice. He was this font of wisdom and I could ask him
anything. When he comes and stays at our place in the Blue Mountains
[west of Sydney], he has a very special friendship with Estelle.
He's been my confidant for 21 years, not just my charity partner. I
just know that without Pat, I wouldn't have been able to do so many
of the things I've done. He's brought out the best in me. That night
in Fulham changed my life. Thank goodness for Stella Artois.
Pat's story I've been worried about Jon at times; he takes on way too
much. We were in London once for a TV ad that we were making with
Kylie Minogue. He barely slept for the three days he was there. He
was a wreck.
He finds it hard to say no, but I think his girls have helped him slow
down. He's learnt to delegate, but he still wants everything to be
perfect. You won't find anyone who works harder. There's also been a
lot of financial stress - it was a few years before he got a decent
wage at Planet Ark. For a while there, I'd buy him food and shove
some cash in his pocket. He'd say, "No, no, no", and I'd say, "Eat!"
Eventually I said, "Will you just get a friggin' wage!" He'd rather
starve and put money into a campaign.
He's put his commitment to the cause before everything else at times,
especially his health. There was a frightening incident a few years ago
when Jon collapsed in the middle of a meeting and got carried away in
an ambulance. He was completely exhausted. It was a big wake-up call.
I've had horrendous depression over the years and a lot of it was
linked with the pressure of everything that was going on in my life:
tennis and family stress. Jon has always been there to support me
and I trust him completely. At the end of my divorce [to Emily Bendit
in 2002], when I was struggling financially and emotionally, Jon was
a real help. He gave me great advice, not just about personal stuff
but on new business ideas and new directions.
Jon's the powerhouse behind what we do and I think it's time for me
to step up and do a bit more. I just feel if you can help people,
why not? Ever since I was 16, I've been involved in charity work
but there are only so many autographs and tennis racquets you can
donate. Jon and I are still doing fund-raising work in Armenia -
unfinished business - and that's now part of Do Something!, which
has been a massive project to get off the ground. It couldn't have
happened without Jon's passion and commitment.
When he said he wanted to become an Australian citizen, I said,
"Mate, Australia would be honoured to have you." When he was named NSW
Australian of the Year [in 2010], it was a great moment. He deserved
the recognition and I felt really, really proud of him.
I really wanted to attend [the award presentation] but was playing
in an overseas tennis tournament. But our friendship has always been
that way. A couple of months might pass and we don't talk because
I'm all over the place, especially when Wimbledon's on and I've got
TV commitments. But it's always so good to see him and catch up.
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/two-of-us-20121105-28stu.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress