Melbourne native Jess Butler, one of this season’s MasterChef contestants, is used to being separated from her loved ones for long periods.
For the past two years, the nurse tells us she and her husband, Andrew, have led a long-distance lifestyle.
While Jess works in Melbourne, Andrew is based in Perth while he completes his PhD in astrophysics.
“His work is really demanding and I try to be there as much as I can,” Jess says.
So how do they make it work?
Jess says she and Andrew fly back and forth constantly. She also tries to get casual nursing contracts in Perth when she can.
“Naturally, we miss each other,” the 29-year-old reveals.
“We’re a married couple and very much in love.”
Jess and her husband Andrew.
It also isn’t the first time they have endured being apart.
After the two met through mutual friends in Melbourne nine years ago, Andrew returned home to the US. The young lovers were then separated for 14 months.
“That was horrendous,” Jess admits. “We had fallen head over heels for each other, so sending him off at the airport and not knowing when we’d be together was the worst day of my life.”
Finally, Andrew was accepted into a master’s degree placement in Australia and he jetted back. The pair were engaged two months later and celebrated their sixth wedding anniversary this year.
“We always felt full confidence it was going to work out,” Jess says.
