Client's Stories

In January this year we received a referral from Beyond Housing in Seymour. Glen had moved back to Victoria to live with family after been a victim of a home invasion and serious assault in public housing in NSW. Glen was living in a caravan on a family member’s property at Seymour but he had been asked him to leave, and he was going to start camping by the river.

Jack and his dog Carlos had been living in his van for several years. He had no long-term housing since a family breakdown and had been moving regularly between different states in Australia. His daughter told him about the Home At Last service, so he called to find out if we could assist him.

David was camping with his dog Timmy on the Murray River near Cobram. He had been on the priority housing waiting list for 5 years. David said he had contacted a crisis housing access point several times but he was told there was no housing.

He’d heard about a Housing Information session organized by HAAG at the Cobram Community Centre in February, and decided to come along!

Trevor was referred to our service by the local crisis homelessness service Beyond Housing in December, after he had received an eviction notice due to the landlord wanting to sell. He had until 26 February to find housing, and wanted to move closer to his support networks and medical services in the Yarra Ranges.

Marie was 81-year-old and living in a very dishevelled, 120 year old cottage. She was renting for a number of years and had paid for things to be done on the cottage herself, as the landlord did not want to spend the money. She was understandable very worried she would get blown away in the next big storm, the cottage was very unsafe.

In October 2020 we received an My Aged Care (MAC) referral from Brimbank Council Regional Assessment Service (RAS) for Sue, a 72 year-old woman living in private rental in
the western suburbs of Melbourne.

Selma is a 63-year-old woman originally from Bosnia (former Yugoslavia).  Along with her family and many others, Selma was forced to seek refuge in other countries for safety.

This is a story of two of our Home at Last clients, sisters, Khanma, 63, and Rishwina, 60, from Assyrian background and came to Australia from Syria as refugees. They have very limited English therefore we used an Assyrian interpreter. They have been living in a privately rented property since arriving in Australia, assisted by the Refugee Settlement Program.

EMMA, 53 years old, moved to Victoria after being assaulted in Townsville, a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland. She was sharing accommodation but after the assault she decided to move to the Barwon Region where she is originally from. The assault impacted her life, and Emma developed fears to find new accommodation.

Vesna became homelessness after her private rental property became far too expensive on her income and it was no longer a viable option as a single person. Private rental was far too unaffordable even with the part-time employment she had at the time. She had little choice but to leave her tenancy and live between the homes of friends and relatives on a temporary basis.

This is a story of one of our Home at Last clients, Alma Diri.  Alma, 74, first approached Home At Last about 9 years ago. Following her divorce from her partner, Alma lived with her daughter for some time. However, she had to leave her daughter’s place and look for alternative accommodation to continue living independently.

On midnight, Monday the 30th March 2020, Stage Three restrictions to stop the spread of COVID-19, started in Victoria. Victorians were given a clear and simple message: “Stay home to Protect Yourself and the Victorian Health Care System”. For homeless people, this order to stay home, was almost impossible to adhere too.

Pages