- Rebecca met pirate-loving Jeff at a Halloween party and they in love
- They built a pirate-themed life together, raising their son in the pirate community
- Jeff faced a serious diagnosis but continues embracing life – and the pirate spirit – as a family
Here she shares her story in her own words.
Walking into a bar, the atmosphere was vibrant with colourful guests and the smell of beer.
It was October 2004 and, dressed in a witch costume, I was keen to celebrate Halloween with my mum, Pat, and friends Hanni and Gab.
On stage was a best-dressed contest – a line of tipsy cowgirls and vampires.
‘Who’s that?’ I wondered, eyeing a handsome man dressed as the fictional character, Captain Jack Sparrow, from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.
‘Are your dreadlocks real?’ I asked him cheekily when he came off the stage.
‘No,’ he smiled.
His name was Jeff, then 42 – a windsurf instructor with gorgeous light blue eyes. It was love at first sight and we danced the night away.
After our first couple of dates, I learned Jeff became passionate about pirate life after watching Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, which was released the year before.
‘Jeff said Jack Sparrow was his alter ego.’
‘I feel like Jack Sparrow is my alter ego,’ Jeff said. He told me he even made pirate hats as a side business.
Friends with a large group of pirate re-enactors, Jeff invited me along to an event.
At first, I felt overwhelmed by the idea and desperately wanted to make a good impression by not wearing a tacky costume.
Putting my sewing skills to use, I created my own pirate outfit.
On the day, a sea of pirates acted out swordplay and fired a cannon.
Watching Jeff throwing an axe, I was mesmerised.
This is pretty amazing, I thought. Plus, they supported charities and other good causes.
A few weeks later, attending a renaissance festival with Jeff and the other pirates, I felt like a real part of the community.
‘Like this?’ I’d ask, waving my wooden sword.
Having been a gymnast and dancer, my theatrical instincts came alive.
At Christmas that year, Jeff got down on one knee and popped the question.
Thrilled, I said yes!
And just three months later, Captain Quicksilver – the leader of our crew – married us in a forest in front of a small crowd, all dressed as pirates, of course.
By now, it really was the pirate life for me!
In June 2006, I gave birth to our son, Wilde.
‘Our house embodies the swashbuckling spirit.’
‘Ahoy, matey!’ Jeff smiled, kissing our boy’s forehead.
Our house truly embodies the swashbuckling spirit, with an authentic weapons room, a display of skulls, and a cannon in the kitchen.
‘We live in a pirate museum,’ I chuckled.
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Wilde was raised by the entire pirate crew. His first words were ‘pitey,’ meaning pirate, and ‘skull.’
At one, he held his first wooden sword made by his dad, Jeff.
He’s one of us, for sure, I’d smile.
By then, Jeff and I were doing pirate entertainment for birthday parties and corporate events.
We’d get audiences involved by giving them swords to play with or having them participate in fun obstacle courses we’d make.
Mermaids often feature in pirate yarns, so I started making mermaid tails too.
This’ll be perfect for me at that little girl’s pool party next month, I thought.
And our boy would always come along.
‘He’s my little merkid,’ I’d say as I held Wilde, both of us splashing in the water with our tails.
Growing up, Wilde enjoyed helping me make costumes and watching his dad craft swords.
‘Can I have a turn?’ he’d ask with an eager grin.
‘We’d fire cannonballs and throw axes.’
Some weekends, we’d drive up to Mum’s property to fire cannonballs and throw axes.
‘Arrgh!’ Mum would call out to cheer us on.
When Wilde’s friends came over, they’d often ask why our Halloween decorations were still up.
‘Oh, this is what our house looks like all the time,’ I’d say.
Being pirates every day, Halloween’s the one night we go out of our comfort zone.
‘I’m a vam-pirate!’ I’d laugh, donning fangs and a cape.
In January 2017, Jeff went in for surgery to remove his tonsils.
To our shock and devastation, he was diagnosed with throat cancer.
‘He has five years to live,’ doctors said.
Despite the grim news, Jeff soldiered on.
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‘I’ll always be a fighter,’ he said.
Now, the lymph node in his neck still has cancerous cells, but its size is monitored.
‘It’s stable,’ doctors confirmed at a recent scan.
For Jeff’s five-year anniversary of his diagnosis in January 2022, we went for a hike to celebrate.
‘I’m a dead man walking!’
‘I’m a dead man walking!’ he laughed.
Wilde, now 16, still loves to dress up with us and comes along to every event.
Throughout the highs and lows, we’ve never stopped being pirates.
After all, we know how to weather stormy seas, and we love arrgh pirate life.
This article was published in 2023.
