Last week, two toddlers left a half-empty house to head to daycare. By the time they returned, it was unrecognisable - fully furnished, including a special surprise. Waiting in their room was a large, pink dollhouse with working wooden doors - opening onto miniature rooms full of toys and furniture.
They had recently moved to Sydney for a fresh start, following a period of their father's incarceration. Unfortunately, the family had hit an early setback, finding mould throughout the new home which caused the youngest to develop asthma. They had to throw out most of their original furniture, with no way to replace it. That was when their caseworker referred the family to ReLove for a helping hand.
At our Alexandria warehouse, both parents found what they needed - a new couch for watching movies together, and a "dream mirror" for Mum's vanity, but the dollhouse in the toy section particularly caught their eye. Dad could picture the children, who he described as best friends, playing with it together for hours.
The dollhouse had a story of its own. It was made specifically for ReLove by the young men of Cobham Youth Justice Centre. With a focus on developing new skills and preparing them to transition back into the community, participants of the Centre's carpentry training programme had donated tables and TV units to ReLove already. But this time, they surprised us by taking on a new and self-directed challenge: building and painting the pink and purple dollhouse, and even funding toys and accessories to go inside. It delighted children passing through ReLove's doors for weeks before finally finding a permanent home with the family.
Thank you to the young men at Cobham for their thoughtfulness and generosity, and to the family for letting us share their experience.
They had recently moved to Sydney for a fresh start, following a period of their father's incarceration. Unfortunately, the family had hit an early setback, finding mould throughout the new home which caused the youngest to develop asthma. They had to throw out most of their original furniture, with no way to replace it. That was when their caseworker referred the family to ReLove for a helping hand.
At our Alexandria warehouse, both parents found what they needed - a new couch for watching movies together, and a "dream mirror" for Mum's vanity, but the dollhouse in the toy section particularly caught their eye. Dad could picture the children, who he described as best friends, playing with it together for hours.
The dollhouse had a story of its own. It was made specifically for ReLove by the young men of Cobham Youth Justice Centre. With a focus on developing new skills and preparing them to transition back into the community, participants of the Centre's carpentry training programme had donated tables and TV units to ReLove already. But this time, they surprised us by taking on a new and self-directed challenge: building and painting the pink and purple dollhouse, and even funding toys and accessories to go inside. It delighted children passing through ReLove's doors for weeks before finally finding a permanent home with the family.
"Our house really feels like a home again, thank you so much." - Mum
This family's story isn't unique in many ways. People leaving incarceration often face a difficult journey back - struggling to find work, housing and acceptance, even with real commitment to change. ReLove works at both ends of that cycle: supporting families to rebuild with a fresh start that sticks, while nurturing relationships like the one with Cobham, which help young people in the justice system make a positive contribution and rewrite their own stories.Thank you to the young men at Cobham for their thoughtfulness and generosity, and to the family for letting us share their experience.
