Newtown Neighbourhood Centre Gratitude Report

CLIENT: Newtown Neighbourhood Centre
PUBLISHED: NNC website
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: 2017 Gratitude Report
CREATED: September 2017
AUTHOR: Fallon Dasey

Report excerpt:

The path to a better life

It’s amazing the difference a year can make.
 Single mum Marina and her daughter Sam started 2017 on a bleak note. After the breakup of Marina’s marriage, the pair were living in a cramped studio in Newtown with shared facilities and almost no cooking amenities. By contrast, they finished the year in a large two-bedroom social housing unit in Eastlakes with a full kitchen and bathroom and the future looking much brighter.
The pair (pictured below) credit NNC with playing a large role in helping them turn around their lives.
“Our new home is huge and it’s close to my brother, so it’s great to have family nearby,” says Marina. “I was beside myself when I found out. I jumped for joy and cried lots of happy tears.”
Marina and Sam’s journey to more appropriate accommodation began when a friend at Newtown restaurant ‘Lentil as Anything’ heard about their plight and directed them to NNC’s multi- agency One-Stop Shop on Thursdays. There, they received help including advocacy support to go on the priority social housing waiting list.
Just nine months later, the pair was able to move into their new digs and get on with their new lives.
Sam, who just turned 19 and will be commencing a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy at Notre Dame University in 2018, is thrilled with the new permanent living arrangement. The stability of their new apartment also means Marina can get on with her plans to begin a business.
NNC CEO Liz Yeo says Marina
and Sam’s experience shows the Centre is recognised in the local community. “Sometimes in people’s lives, something happens and they find themselves homeless and unsure how to deal with that,” she says. “We provide them with a place they can come to, and people who can help them to get the best possible result.”