The unveiling of a redesigned outdoor space and communal hub at Anchor’s Youth Foyer in Lilydale will have a lifelong, positive impact on all involved.
With thanks to some of Opendoor’s work for the dole participants, the front yard of one of the Foyer units was transformed into a usable space, designed to encourage connection.
Fitted out with a new vegie garden, a bocce pitch, deck and barbecue, it created a welcoming environment for the young people in the Foyer program to gather, learn new skills in produce growing and harvesting, and allow them to have fun as a group.
The garage, typically used as an art studio, was also fitted with better storage, creating a much more user-friendly setup.
Youth Foyers provide young people who are or close to experiencing homelessness with an independent living situation, while helping them reengage with education or training over a two-year program to set them on a path of self-determination.
“This place has been going for about 15 years. The Foyer is a service. It’s a response to youth homelessness, it’s a pathway out of homelessness for young people,” Anchor chief executive officer Heidi Tucker said.
“This will really produce some comfort for young people. The Foyer program is for young people to form community because they’ve often come in from being quite isolated.
“So this is about them spending time together in communal spaces, cooperating with each other, cooking with each other, doing activities with each other, because those are the life skills that we all need, cooperation and community. They’ll be able to do it in a much lovelier place.”
While Anchor was the beneficiary of the project, work for the dole coordinator Granville Jones said for the five participants who worked tirelessly on the project, it gave them purpose and new skills to take into their lives moving forward.
“Our participants put so much hard work in here. These guys always had a smile on their face. It was freezing cold outside and they would be digging and smiling. They really enjoyed this project,” he said.
“The great thing for me was, the project went for 12 weeks, and some of them had finished their time after eight weeks, and they said, ‘No, Granville, we want to stay till the end. We want to see this through to the end’. So that was a really big thing for us.”
For Michael, one of the participants, he said it was rewarding seeing the transformation of what the space looked like originally to what it is now but more so, knowing the positive impact it will have on the young residents.
“I didn’t even know they existed, Anchor. So when I was first told about it, I just had no idea they did this sort of work, or this sort of work was even around,” he said.
“So to know we’re working for people who have a purpose is really cool, that we can give back as well and hopefully help some young people is very rewarding.”
Building supervisor Andy said seeing a group of guys who didn’t have much experience in landscaping or building complete a project to the standard they have was incredible.
“The boys have been very good and engaged in the job which was fantastic. They’ve done very well for guys that haven’t had too much hands-on experience, they’ve really pulled together,” he said.
Granville said with the help of some local suppliers, including Allboard Bayswater, PSI Plumbing and Civil, Bowens Croydon and Sydney Tools Scoresby, the project came in under budget, allowing Opendoor to purchase the Foyer a professional coffee machine.
This was the first time Anchor partnered with an employment agency and Heidi said the two organisations’ values align perfectly, to assist people who need some extra support.
“I’m absolutely delighted with this partnership between Anchor and Opendoor. I walked into Anchor a decade ago, and I think one of the first things I thought was, ‘well, isn’t employment a pathway out of homelessness?’” she said.
“So finally, here we are, 10 years later, with this wonderful partnership. I always say it takes a community in order to assist somebody on their pathway and I think our partnership with Opendoor is really the start of that.”
The stories of young people who have been forced to sleep in toilet blocks or parks because of homelessness, Heidi said are the hidden tales left out of what people picture as homelessness.
“You might not see young people so often as what you might see older, more brazen people, but they’re there, and they are sometimes putting themselves highly at risk with people who are not, perhaps, very nice people. We don’t want that happening,” she said.
In handing over his final congratulations to both the Foyer residents and the Opendoor participants, Granville left them with some advice: be creatively brilliant, be compassionate and have drive.
“We can’t ensure your success; only you can do that. Only you will take the initiative. We can support you. All of us here can support you guys, but it’s what you do at the end that’s going to make all the difference,” he said.
“We, all these people, are your cheerleaders. They’ve come out here to celebrate with you and celebrate you.”
