SENSE Exclusive: THE WIGGLES Support Terminally Ill Veteran
Help THE WIGGLES Help a Friend
Written by: Tom Wilson - Sense Music Media
Brendan Nikoljew is a fighter. He served with the Australian Army in Afghanistan, deploying as an artilleryman to the Helmand Province in 2010. Unfortunately, he’s also had to fight a war with an enemy that’s much harder to see coming. This time, the battlefield is his own body. Brendan was first diagnosed with testicular cancer more than three years ago, and the affable giant with the bodybuilder physique undertook chemo. With the support of his wife Leah and children Georgie and Roman, Brendan managed to fight off cancer not once, not twice, but three times in less than two years.
We’d love to say that that’s the end of the story, but in November last year – three days before they were due to move into their new home, ready to start a new chapter – Brendan found out that the cancer was back, and it had spread. This time, the diagnosis is terminal. Brendan is currently receiving palliative care at home. He has pneumonia, and has been told he has days left.
YouTube - Brendan’s Fight Against Terminal Cancer
The veteran community, including Legacy and Facebook group The Pineapple Express, has thrown their weight behind fundraising efforts to support Brendan’s family. A GoFundMe page was established to handle the enormous medical bills his family has been saddled with (all while paying the mortgage on their new home). So far, it has raised over $117,000.
Now, SENSE MUSIC MEDIA can be the first to tell you that Anthony Field, Australian Army veteran and co-founder of the biggest children’s group in the world, THE WIGGLES, has thrown his support behind Brendan in a big way.
Anthony has taken his name off every track of THE WIGGLES upcoming album Lullabies with Love and replaced it with Brendan’s. This most ethical example of fudging paperwork means that all co-writing royalties for this release will be going directly to support Brendan’s wife and young family.
“I’ve been on the journey with him for quite a few months now,” Anthony told me over the phone from his Gladesville home. “Honestly, this man is one of those guys … he’s in the worst of times, and he’s asking you how you are, you know what I mean? He’s one of those guys who you talk to and he just brightens up your life, even though he’s going through the worst you could be going through.”
“[Lullabies with Love] will give royalties to the kids and the family for a few years. Every so often, they’ll get some money, which will be really great … A mate of mine, Rob Pickersgill, got onto Legacy to really help out the family. We had a good laugh about the ARIA Awards, because [THE WIGGLES] haven’t won an ARIA for a couple of years, but if we win the ARIA for this, [Brendan’s] kids are going to come, and [Rob] is the one that said, “I want them to wear camouflage skivvies!””
“I said to Brendan, “I want you to know that these songs mean a lot to me, and I’m glad they do, because I want to give them to you, because you mean a lot to me.” He’s a real life force, you know?”
Someone get onto the judges at the ARIAs – we need MultiCam skivvies on that stage. No amount of money is going to change Brendan’s outcome, but you can help ease the financial burden on his young family by donating to the link below.
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