For a long time, Jasmine didn’t have a place she could call home.
After moving to Ōtautahi Christchurch to be closer to her daughter, she expected a fresh start. Instead, she found herself moving from couch to couch. Sometimes she stayed with family. Sometimes with friends. Nowhere felt permanent.
“I didn’t really have anywhere to call home,” Jasmine says. “I was just getting through one day at a time.”
The uncertainty wore her down. Living without stability made it hard to plan, to rest, or to imagine what came next. But Jasmine knew she wanted more, not only for herself, but so her children could see her building a better life.
“I didn’t really have anywhere to call home,” Jasmine says. “I was just getting through one day at a time.”
A door opens
Hope came through a familiar community. Jasmine’s church pastors knew her situation and introduced her to Tiaki, Visionwest’s Māori leader in Christchurch.
“That really lifted me,” she says. “Tiaki came to my daughter’s house with a housing application. I filled it in that day.”
Things moved quickly after that. Jasmine was approved the following week. Before she fully had time to process what was happening, she was preparing to move into a home of her own.
“It was buzzy,” she says. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Jasmine outside her home in Ōtautahi.
More than a house
Having a roof over her head was life‑changing. But for Jasmine, a home meant more than walls and a door.
Her Support Navigator, Alicia, walked alongside her through the process, helping her understand each step and build confidence along the way.
“Visionwest is a good place for people like me,” Jasmine explains. “A lot of the staff have lived similar lives. We connect. They don’t tell you what to do. They help you find your way.”
That approach mattered. Jasmine didn’t feel judged or rushed. She felt supported.
When she learned her housing was permanent, the moment hit her fully. “This is my forever house,” she says. “It feels great. It feels good.”
A steadier future
Stability gave Jasmine room to breathe. It also gave her space to reconnect with her children and think differently about the future.
For the first time in a long while, she could focus on more than just surviving. She could think about rebuilding relationships. About healing. About what it meant to feel safe again.
Having a permanent home gave her pride. Not in a loud way, but in a steady, grounded way. It meant she could stand tall and say, This is mine. I belong here.
Being seen
What mattered most to Jasmine was how she was treated throughout the journey. She felt seen as a whole person, not just someone in need of housing.
“Visionwest helped me find my feet,” she says. “They navigate you along the pathways, so you can get what you need.”
She knows her story will resonate with others who are still waiting for stability. People who are tired of temporary solutions. People who just want a place where they can start again.
“Visionwest is a good place for people like me, a lot of the staff have lived similar lives. We connect. They don’t tell you what to do. They help you find your way.”
A place to belong
Today, Jasmine describes her home as a turning point. It represents safety, dignity, and the chance to move forward.
There is still work to do. Healing always takes time. But now, she is doing that work from a place of security.
“This is my forever place,” she says again, smiling.
Home is no longer a source of uncertainty for Jasmine. It is a space to live and journey from. A space that allows her to keep building the life she wants for herself and her whānau.