Generous gift in Will helping Salvos ease housing crisis in Cairns
BY MELANIE RIDOUT
For many people, tropical Cairns recalls relaxing holidays and visits to nearby rainforests and the Great Barrier Reef. But beyond the glossy postcard images of Far North Queensland, a severe housing crisis is pushing people into homelessness.
Locals with nowhere to go are being forced to live in their cars and tents. Hundreds of people are sleeping rough in the Cairns CBD, and crisis services are being inundated with pleas for help.
But now, a special group of Salvation Army supporters is helping change the future for those without a roof over their heads.
These supporters have all left The Salvation Army a gift in their Wills, totalling $1 million. With the help of these generous bequests, a modern housing hub will be built in Cairns. It will provide a permanent place to call home for some of the city’s most vulnerable people.
The new hub will include 40 modern social housing units. They will be for single people aged over 25 who are at a high risk of long-term homelessness.
Aaron Pimlott, Homelessness Manager for Queensland, says the housing hub will help fill “a massive gap”.
“This new hub will provide people in need with immediate housing for as long as they need it. They will also receive wraparound case management support. Each unit can even be a forever home if the person wishes it to be,” he says.
“There is a bottleneck of people who are seeking to leave crisis accommodation for permanent homes. There isn’t enough long-term housing for people who have fallen through the cracks.”
Second chance for Shelley For Queenslanders like Shelley, permanent housing is a second chance at life. Shelley had experienced family violence and was battling drug addiction. Then, she lost custody of her children and became homeless.
“The pain of that time will never leave me,” she says. “I was couch surfing and sleeping in the car. I had my kids ripped from me and had to do everything I could to get them back.”
Shelley had successfully completed rehab. Soon after, she was able to access permanent housing like that in the new Cairns hub. No longer using drugs, and with a safe and secure home, Shelley could have her children back to live with her.
“It is the biggest step in rebuilding my life,” she says. “It is having stability and being able to fill my home with things I love. The best thing is being able to come home with my kids to somewhere that’s mine.”
If you are considering a gift in your Will, Aaron wants you to know something important. “You will be creating something extraordinary beyond your lifetime,” he says.
“Your gift is going into bricks and mortar. You are providing vulnerable people with housing for many, many years to come.
“When you leave this earth and give this gift to the world, your legacy continues. I can’t thank you enough.”
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