Jack Dohmen-Jolly Charity Round
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Jack Dohmen-Jolly excited for the Sunbury community to come together for charity round
For Jack Dohmen-Jolly, Sunbury Jets’ annual Dohmen-Jolly Round is more than a fundraiser. It's a moment of reflection, gratitude, and community. With the fourth edition approaching, Jack sat down to reflect on how his parents impacted his basketball journey, and that of countless other local Sunbury players.
It was always going to be basketball for Jack.
Both his Mum Sue and Dad Brent played basketball in their youth, and when Jack's older brother started playing, Brent drove straight into coaching. By the time Jack was four or five years old, he was on the court as well.
"Dad coached me from my first game when I was six," Jack recalls."
By that point he was coaching two teams – mine and my brothers - and he went on to coach a third when my sister started playing as well.”
“He was a really passionate coach. He just always wanted everyone to do the right thing, and if we stuffed up, he was always there to help us learn from it.”
“I remember he was very big on us being able to use our left hand,” Jack said, laughing.
Brent's commitment to the sport was extraordinary, but so was his wife Sue’s. While Brent coached, Sue would shuttle the other Dohmen-Jolly children and their friends from court to court, and volunteer as team manager.
“I’m still close friends with some of the guys who we carpooled with. I remember sharing lifts with David Angove - who’s still on my team now – when we were like 12,” said the now Jets Youth League Men’s Captain.
Brent coached Jack domestically until under-14s, then transitioned to coaching his other kids while Jack moved clubs and found his way into the Jets pathway. Even when he wasn't coaching Jack directly, Brent stayed involved - reviewing games, shooting around in the backyard, and still drilling the importance of the left hand.
When Jack was around 16, both his parents were diagnosed with cancer. He didn’t tell many people, but word slowly spread through the Sunbury basketball community, and what came back was exactly what he and his family wanted.
"All my teammates just got around me more and more as it progressed," he says. "The more people there were, the more support there was. They treated me the same as everyone else, which was exactly what I wanted and needed."
Basketball was a huge part of his support system during that period. Even as their health declined, Sue was still showing up to games, and Brent was still coaching domestic teams.
And unfortunately, in 2021, within three months of each other both Sue and Brent passed away from cancer.
The outpouring that followed from the Sunbury Basketball community was immediate. General manager Chris Tighe approached the family about creating something to honour both Sue and Brent. The Dohmen-Jolly Round was born, raising funds for Western Health Foundation’s Sunshine Cancer Centre.
"The SBA had seen other associations do cancer rounds," Jack explains. "They just thought it was a good idea to get everyone around it, but instead of calling it a cancer round, make it a Dohmen-Jolly round.
"Everyone in the association gets around it. The first-year Chris even shaved his head for charity.”
Now in its fourth year, the round has become one of the highlights of the Sunbury Basketball calendar. Jack says the atmosphere is something you have to experience.
“Western Health were a big part of our support system throughout my parents' journey, and I love that we get to fundraise to give other families the chance to get the support we had.
"It's not like you just rock up, watch basketball and leave. Everyone stays back for a while, and it really feels like a whole community thing.”
“For me personally, it's a really reflective time. I always look back on how far I’ve come in basketball and how much my parents helped me get to where I am now.”
“I’m not big on speeches,” said the captain, “but during the match I’ll lead with my actions, and I’m sure my teammates will come on the journey with me.”
Sue and Brent’s legacy lives on not only in their children, but through the countless other Sunbury basketball players who they touched with their generosity.
"People mention them all the time," Jack says. "All the time."
“As the round gets closer, more and more people come up to me and talk about how much my mum and dad did for everyone.”
“I’m really looking forward to once again getting together, supporting each other and raising some money for a good cause."
Funds raised across both weekends go to Western Health Foundation's Sunshine Cancer Services, the service that supported both families through their diagnoses.
The Dohmen-Jolly Round takes place across two weekends in 2026. Youth League games on Saturday 18 July from 6pm, and Championship games on Saturday 25 July from 6pm, both at Boardman Stadium with 50% of all ticket revenue going directly to Western Health
Jolly Round Events
Saturday 18 July - Jolly Round 1
6pm: Youth League Women v Hume City
8pm: Youth League Men v Westgate
What’s On: Special jerseys, raffle tickets, half-time fundraising activations, player charity challenges, and bar open late.
Sunday 19 July – Jolly Round 2
6pm: Championship Women v McKinnon
8pm: Championship Men v McKinnon
What’s On: Special jerseys, Top-Gun-Toss, player signings, raffle draw, half-time fundraising activations, and player charity challenges, and bar open late.
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