Sandra says she feels confident in herself and believes that the best in life, love and happiness is ahead of her. That’s pretty exciting for someone who, just a short time ago, was homeless and living in emergency accommodation on the outskirts of Christchurch … until she reached out to Visionwest Community Housing Canterbury.
Sandra grew up in Manukau City, South Auckland. In 2021, she moved to Ōtautahi Christchurch to be closer to her daughter and her whānau which included her two grandchildren.
Through various circumstances, and within a short while, Sandra found herself homeless and living in emergency accommodation; a motel quite a way from facilities with several other people experiencing homelessness, some struggling to stay within the boundaries of the law.
I’d been placed in a motel because I was homeless. Believe it or not, it was in an outer suburb. I was mad and sad; I was unwell but to go and get my medicine I had to travel two and a half hours by bus. There were no shops close by. There was a restaurant, too expensive for me, but that was all. There were no supermarkets either. A little further down the road there was a fish and chip shop and, believe it or not, a McDonalds but I had to get a bus when I needed to do grocery shopping from a bus stop that was outside of the small place I was living.
So, that’s where I was at. I definitely was homeless and didn’t fair too well with my low self-esteem.
Sandra meets Visionwest
One day, Sandra received a phone call from a lady at the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) telling her about Visionwest’s Community Housing service in Canterbury. Up until that time, she’d never heard of Visionwest and the support they gave to those experiencing homelessness, but things were about to change. Not long after, Sally, a Visionwest Community Housing Tenancy Manager, phoned her and suggested she come into the Christchurch office for an interview.
I had an interview with Visionwest on a Wednesday, by Friday I was moving in. I had my stuff brought here. The first thing I noticed was Sally upstairs, checking all around, taking photographs, making sure everything was legit before I signed the agreement. Then I noticed a lady come in. She took off her shoes and sat on the corner of the floor. At first, I didn’t know who this lady was. I soon found out.
That lady was Julia, Lead Support Navigator with Visionwest Community Housing. Her role, and that of her team, is to ensure Visionwest’s housing tenants have access to all the support they need to ensure their tenancy is successful. They korero (dialogue) with our Visionwest whānau to ensure they are adjusting to their new homes and to assess whether they have any needs beyond housing.
Everything changed for me. Because of the acceptance of the Visionwest team, I feel confident and loved. And I can acknowledge that the best in life, love and happiness is ahead of me.
When asked about the difference having a place to live makes in her life, Sandra reflects on how good it feels to be settled.
I’m able to have a daily routine and go out to different activities. That uplifts my spirit, and it just makes life more manageable. And being in a home that’s like this, beautiful and spacious and comfortable, you want to keep it clean and tidy, don’t you?
When I moved in, my Tenancy Manager would call on me and ask, ‘How’s your day been?’ That happened often. Then it was on a monthly basis and now it’s every six weeks. I’ve got friendly help and professional guidance from Visionwest. Take Julia for instance, she’s a person of integrity. She’s respectful, trustworthy, and helpful. Her faithfulness and loyalty I admire. That doesn’t just happen.
It’s such a short time that I’ve been with Visionwest. Usually, you have to know people a while. Like, for me, after three years you feel like you know them … but with Visionwest, it’s different. It’s what Visionwest has given me with their care and their mutual help and now I have personal value in myself because of it.
Sandra’s new life
Like almost every person Visionwest has spent time walking alongside, Sandra is incredibly appreciative for the support she’s received. She praises Visionwest because of the way the kaimahi (staff) understand individuals and families who are homeless and because the interactions with whānau are caring and open.
[Visionwest] really believes in people. When you have faith in a person that they can grow and that they can become better individuals, then that makes that person feel secure and safe. Sometimes you can’t think like that from within your own family because they’re pretty messed up like you are. But I have Visionwest, and I have my faith. It’s not only helped me mentally and emotionally, but spiritually also. It makes me strong. It helps me tell the truth that builds my character, and, from that, I have found friendships that are really precious to me.
I just want to share this. Before I moved in here, my daughters didn’t want to have anything to do with me. So, I didn’t have a relationship with the grandchildren. And my hope was to restore relationship with my two daughters and grandchildren. That definitely has happened.
Sometimes you can be too proud to receive that love and compassion. Because I didn’t think I’d deserved it. I was too proud to say I was homeless. I knew I was homeless, but I was too proud to admit that because I hadn’t been in that position before. So, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. There is a quotation that Māori use, te tāngata, te tāngata, te tāngata – it’s the people, it’s the people, it’s the people. Thank you.
Read another inspirational Visionwest Community Housing story – Miro’s Story – Hope When I Needed it.
Find out more about Visionwest Community Housing.
** We understand that it is a great privilege when someone generously agrees to share their story. This blog and other material are shared with Sandra’s permission and we thank her for her generosity.