LOVE YOUR SISTER
Co-founded by Samuel and Connie Johnson, Love Your Sister is a million-strong village of everyday Aussies committed to vanquishing all cancers.
Samuel completed the challenge, broke the world record for long‑distance unicycling and helped raise $1.4M for research.
Samuel was expecting a pat on the back when he returned. Connie was quick to remind him “It’s not over when you get off the unicycle. It’s not over when I die. It’s over when we stop losing mums to cancer.” Samuel promised on the spot to raise their fundraising goal to $10M.
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Connie died before the ten million dollar promise could be kept, but she knew Samuel was good for it. Connie started something special. The Love Your Sister village is a magnificent place. We now fight all cancers because, it’s a place where families are paramount and love is everything.
HERE, IN OUR VILLAGE, WE DON'T TRADE ON HOPE AND WE CERTAINLY DON'T FEEL SORRY FOR OURSELVES.
TOGETHER WE ARE STRONG.
WE STAND TOGETHER, AND WE VANQUISH ALL CANCERS WITH JOY, BECAUSE NOW IS AWESOME.
2013 & 2014 - UNICYCLE RIDE
15,478 KM AROUND AUSTRALIA
FEBRUARY 2018
DAY 1 - SAMUEL QUITS ACTING IN SWEARY POST ON FACEBOOK.
DAY 2 - CONNIE CALLS OUT HIS POTTY MOUTH.
DAY 3 - VILLAGERS GET CREATIVE AND START A SWEARJAR CAMPAIGN.
...WITHIN 6 MONTHS
OUR VILLAGERS HAD SWORN THEIR HEADS OFF RAISING OVER HALF A MILLION DOLLARS !
10 MAY 2017 - BIG HEART PROJECT
LYNEHAM NETBALL COURTS, CANBERRA
“Just months before my sister Connie died from breast cancer, she created the largest, twinkliest heart the country has ever seen, out of over 50 million five-cent coins, raising an epic $2.57M for cancer research and proving that those little coins all add up to make a big difference to cancer researchers”
Samuel Johnson
7TH SEPTEMBER 2017
CONNIE JOHNSON IS AWARDED THE MEDAL OF THE ORDER OF AUSTRALIA (OAM) .
SIR PETER COSGROVE DESCRIBED CONNIE AS “A DETERMINED, INSPIRATIONAL FIGURE AND A GREAT AUSTRALIAN”
VALE CONNIE JOHNSON
8TH SEPTEMBER 2017
"We lost Connie today. Or, as she asked me to say, she died of cancer today.
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It was so beautiful. We laughed, we cried, we sang stupid songs from our childhood to her, which she loved (mostly!).
I read her so many village messages, which she relished. She went so richly, and with such grace. Trust me, she was genuinely cushioned by your love, till the end."
JANUARY 2018
SAMUEL JOHNSON NAMED AS VICTORIA'S AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR FOR 2018
JULY 2018 - LYS RAINBOW RUN
SAMUEL JOINS THOUSANDS OF COLOURFUL AND ENTHUSIASTIC VILLAGERS IN A FUN RUN AROUND SYDNEY HARBOUR
2019 - DANCING WITH THE STARS
SAM & JORJA WIN THE MIRRORBALL TROPHY
2019 - ON THE ROAD AGAIN
SAM VISITS OVER 200 COMMUNITIES IN 6 MONTHS
SEPTEMBER 2019 - WE DID IT, PROMISE KEPT!
THIS WAS THE MOMENT WE REACHED $10,000,000.
2020 & 2021
SAMUEL, LIKE MOST OTHERS, STAYED INDOORS AND DISCOVERED HOW TO ZOOM.
LOVE YOUR SISTER KEEPS THE HAMMER DOWN AND SURGES PAST $15m RAISED.
JUNE 2021 - AN UNEXPECTED SETBACK
WITH THE LOVE AND SUPPORT OF THE LYS VILLAGE, IT'LL TAKE MORE THAN A LITTLE WHITE CAR TO STOP SAMUEL.
