Agents think pink for breast cancer charities

Agents think pink for breast cancer charities
Cassidy KnowltonDecember 8, 2020

Real estate agencies got behind Breast Cancer Awareness month in October, baking thousands of cupcakes, hosting fundraising events and raising awareness.

Agencies including Jellis Craig, Laing + Simmons, LJ Hooker, The Professionals and Sarah Lorden Real Estate organised events and marketing campaigns to raise money and awareness for multiple breast cancer charities in October and throughout the year.

“Every second person has had some reasonably direct experience with the disease, whether it’s a sister or a mother or a business partner,” says Andrew Krulis, co-director of Laing + Simmons Bondi Junction.

Krulis’ former business partner, Mary Parbury, died from breast cancer in 2009, and her daughter Brianna founded the Black Tie for Breast Cancer charity event to raise money for the Cancer Centre at the Prince of Wales Hospital.

Laing + Simmons Bondi Junction is a major sponsor of the event, which this year raised $145,000 at its black-tie gala event in April.

“It’s a nice way to keep her memory alive in one way and also to do something that’s very practical in helping these guys who do a wonderful job in trying to treat and prevent people from getting breast cancer,” Krulis says.

Laing + Simmons Woollahra also has a personal connection with the breast cancer cause, as property consultant Evan J. Williams’ mother, in remission from breast cancer for the past five years, is a spokeswoman for the National Breast Cancer Foundation.

The office organised an event for her and National Breast Cancer Foundation marketing manager Nettie Burke (pictured above, with Williams) to come speak with staff and local business owners, and Williams says the event was successful in raising both money and awareness.

“It was very successful and it’s only going to get bigger from here,” Williams says.

Fans of The Block will recall the Pink Lady silhouettes outside 43 Cameron Street, Richmond, Rod and Tania’s house (pictured above), and the agency donated $25,000 from the sale of the house to Breast Cancer Network Australia.

Following on from that success, Jellis Craig displayed the Pink Lady silhouettes at its October auctions (pictured above) to raise awareness for the breast cancer cause. The agency has raised $80,000 for breast cancer charities in the past year and around $300,000 from its annual Pink Lady Cup since 2005.

”With more women being diagnosed with breast cancer each year, currently an average of 38 every day, Jellis Craig is committed to helping BCNA make a difference to those in the community affected by with breast cancer,” Jellis Craig CEO Nick Dowling says.

Sarah Lorden Real Estate has used its October auctions to raise money for fighting breast cancer, donating $500 from every October listing and holding Saturday charity marquees (pictured above) to raise money for the McGrath Foundation, which funds breast cancer nurses.

The agency has raised more than $13,150 for the McGrath Foundation so far this year, and it also sponsors the charity event A Day on the Green, a celebrity cricket match, in November.

“We have raised tens of thousands of dollars over the years and it is a cause we are really passionate about supporting,” says director Sarah Lorden.

LJ Hooker Wingham agents rolled up their sleeves for Pink Ribbon Day, baking, decorating and selling 1,326 cupcakes (pictured above) to raise money to fight breast cancer. The office raised $2,188.40 on the day for the Cancer Council, twice the amount it raised last year. The office pans to become involved again next year.

The Professionals are also heavily involved in the breast cancer cause, as the agency is a diamond partner of the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Australia-wide, its offices have raised more than $1.7 million for the charity, with a percentage of the commission from every sale going to NBCF. 

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