Who could not be touched by the story of “Jackie” and her thanks to the stranger in the Merimbula Salvos store on Friday, May 4.
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In the midst of her terrible situation, Jackie, a single mum, with five children and homeless, still found time to reflect on the kindness of a stranger who gave her $50 just before Mother’s Day, and found time to write to the News Weekly to publicly thank the stranger.
It’s easy to think that homelessness is something that affects other people, not us, because we don’t get into that situation.
Jackie admits that she has made some bad choices. But who out of all of us has not made bad choices?
The difference is often the safety net of parents or a partner who has been able to bail us out at a tricky moment. Or maybe we were just lucky enough to have a little cash stashed away that we could use for an emergency.
Some people have no safety nets, there is no comfortable backup of a couple of hundred dollars because every cent is needed and there are no margins for error; one upset can quickly turn into a disaster and trigger a series of events leaving them homeless and desperate.
Often there is a thin line between surviving and being on the streets.
Jackie and her family are now in temporary accommodation and hope to have something better by the end of the month.
Crisis accommodation and affordable housing have been on the Social Justice Advocates of the Sapphire Coast agenda for some considerable time and on the agendas of the many other organisations that interact with those in need.
On Tuesday, May 15 there was a discussion between many of the interested parties and Bega Valley Shire Council and it is believed that a positive step forward was taken to work on a plan to help ease the hardships felt by many residents.
While council does not have the money, it does have land and that can be a valuable asset in propelling the development of affordable housing forward.
Although the definition does vary, according to the state government, housing is considered affordable if it costs less than 30 per cent of gross household income.
Sapphire Coast Social Justice Advocate Ross Williams said the day was “progressive”, and a “pretty good step towards solving the issue”.
