The Bernies join sea of Marilyns in memory of their friend

A group of friends from Jamestown took part in their first Marilyn Jetty Swim together last year, in honour of their friend Bernie who was living with incurable pancreatic cancer. Sadly, Bernie passed away just a few months later. Now a year on, their team ‘The Bernies’ are getting ready to swim again this Sunday 2 February in honour of their dear friend.

Held every February as part of the Channel 7 Brighton Jetty Classic, the 2025 Marilyn Jetty Swim will see a record-breaking 765 South Australians swimming or paddling 400 metres around the Brighton Jetty—all dressed head to toe as ‘50’s icon Marilyn Monroe.

Bernie’s friend Cate Pearce had been participating in the Marilyn Jetty Swim for many years, after her own diagnosis of breast cancer in 2018. At around the same time Cate learned of her own diagnosis, Bernie was also diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

“I would call in and sit with her while she was having chemo, before I had to go and have radiotherapy. It made our friendship even closer,” Cate said.

“Last year, when Bernie was told there was no more treatment for her to have, she called me and said she wanted to do the Marilyn Jetty Swim. She just felt it was something she needed to do.”

“She was not a swimmer; it was way out of her comfort zone. But her desire to give back to Cancer Council SA for all the help she’d received was amazing.”

Bernie asked a group of her close friends and family to join her – they had all grown up in Jamestown together and had known each other since they were kids. Together they formed ‘The Bernies’ and raised an incredible $13,000 for Cancer Council SA.

Sadly, Bernie passed away just four months later in June 2024. Team Captain of ‘The Bernies’, Mary-Jane Hendry said it was a day they’ll never forget and this year’s swim is an important way for them to honour Bernie again and raise even more funds.

“She’s the reason so many of us braved the water and braved the white swimsuit. It will be another really emotional day because she’s not there with us, but I know Bernie would be so pleased that we’d chosen to do it again,” Mary-Jane said.

“When you have that connection and you know someone who has been through cancer, it really pushes home why you’re doing this. We’re all just so passionate about raising funds for research. If one day there’s a cure for pancreatic cancer, we’ve helped do that.”

The 2025 Marilyn Jetty Swim marks 12 years of the event and is set to see the largest number of Marilyns to date, with the blonde bombshells planning to raise a huge $400,000 towards Cancer Council SA’s vital prevention, research and support programs.