Jackpot is the trip of his dreams as frequent flyer competition winners say thanks a million

JACK Dyson’s parents vowed when he was born with a chronic illness to show him as much of the world as they could.

Qantas Frequent Flyer

JACK Dyson’s parents vowed when he was born with a chronic illness to show him as much of the world as they could while he was well enough to travel.

Janine and Scott Dyson’s mission has been fast-tracked after winning a million Qantas Frequent Flyer points in a Sunday Tasmanian competition.

“When our son was born we were over the moon but 24 hours later we were left devastated as he was rushed to surgery,” she said.

Their lives changed forever when, 12 days later, Jack was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.

“Scott and I decided really early on that instead of mortgaging ourselves to the hilt and driving flashy cars we’d just pay the house off and use whatever was spare or that came our way so that Jack could travel,” Janine told the Sunday Tasmanian.

The Rokeby couple have since saved enough to take their only child, now 17, on three trips so far.

“When he was about seven, we weren’t sure how things would pan out so we borrowed against the house and took him to Disneyland in California,” she said.

“He’s been in and out of hospital but a couple of years ago we did the same thing, borrowed against the house, and took him to Singapore and Hong Kong.”

But Janine, a pharmacy ­assistant, said there was still so much of the world they wanted him to see.

“It might be the case when he’s 21 that he can travel by himself or his condition could progress that quickly that he could never travel again.

“So we just wanted to give him that opportunity to have as many experiences as he can have,” she said.

The life expectancy for cystic fibrosis, on average, was about 35 years, Janine said.

“When Jack’s time comes we want him to be able to look back on the amazing things he has seen, people he has met and the experiences we have shared as a family.”

While the news of their win sinks in, the intrepid teenager – who was “gobsmacked” at the prize – is already planning how to spend the points.

“I think Jack’s grand plan is for us to fly to LA in business class. It’d be lovely and we’d never ever be able to justify it normally so this is the perfect opportunity to do it,” Janine said.

“He’s a bit of a Disney tragic, so I think we’ll probably go to Florida and make the most of it and do it.”