When Stuart* moved into a one-bed apartment in Sydney’s inner city after years of living on the streets and in hostels, all he had was an “emergency pack” of air mattress and bedding, plus a borrowed TV. Today, he has a furnished home, thanks to Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
A team of volunteers, led by Dean Hart, Construction Manager for Habitat NSW, delivered, assembled and installed a bed, complete with new linen, a bedside table and lamp, a sofa, dining table with chairs, chest of drawers, kitchen items, refrigerator and a washing machine.
“The apartment was almost completely bare when we got there,” said Anne, one of the community volunteers. “But after a few hours, some intense discussion on how to assemble the furniture, and lots of work with the screwdriver and allen keys it looked great.”
So far, 30 volunteer days involving corporate and community volunteer teams, have been devoted to this project in partnership with NSW Family and Community Services (FACS) which provides the unfurnished accommodation.
Between August and November they furnished 54 apartments for homeless people who had been sleeping rough in Sydney’s Martin Place and local parks. Teams can generally kit out two or three apartments in a day.
“When homeless people move into apartments they need support to maintain tenancies and not return to sleeping rough, said Dean Hart. “To maximise the possibility of success of the tenancy homeless people require supports including furniture and furnishings, and that is what this project provides.”
A big thank you to our corporate supporters: Investa, Somfy, Metlife, Stayz, Sage, Cuscal, Bank of America Merral Lynch, ACI Worldwide and Marketo
* Name has been changed for privacy reasons
