Creating the heart of a home
The House of Grace is a safe haven, giving young mums-to-be a place to stop, breathe and learn life and parenting skills. Last year, Nikau Foundation helped pay for roof repairs, but the impact of this grant is so much more than just bricks and mortar.
A huge dining table is now the central hub of activity at Wellington’s House of Grace. But it was a different – and sometimes very noisy – story before much-needed roof repairs were completed, says Regional Manager Fiona Collins.
“We’ve got a giant dining table, and everybody eats together every day – but we had a very leaky roof. The skylights over the dining room were made from old plastic, so whenever it rained, you couldn’t have a proper conversation because it was so loud.”
“They had a vision of young women needing a family environment – not a course or a programme, but a home and a family where they can be safe, loved, nurtured and accepted with their baby no matter what.”
Space to make connections
Fiona says the Nikau Foundation grant made a huge difference, enabling them to create a comfortable space where House of Grace residents could spend time together.
“With funding from Nikau, we managed to purchase two quite large skylights. They are double glazed, so that means you can now talk! So that’s amazing. “The dining table is more than just a spot where you eat and go. It’s just so lovely in there now. Often people will stay and chat, which is great for making those connections in the home.
“It doesn’t sound so glamorous for funding to go on a building project like that, but essentially, if we didn’t have a building that served its purpose, we wouldn’t have the House of Grace.”
Realising a vision
Since it was established in 2001, the House of Grace has helped more than 200 young women learn life skills and prepare for parenting or, if they choose, adoption.
The non-profit organisation was started by Treena and Marcus van Rijssel after the Wellington couple saw a gap in support offered to vulnerable pregnant teens. They knew they could do something to help.
“It was really something that was placed on their hearts,” says Fiona.
The organisation now has two family homes in Wellington and Hamilton run by house parents. There are plans to create a third in Christchurch.
At any one time, up to four young women and their babies can be accommodated in each home. Fiona says while the numbers may not seem huge, the intention is to provide a supportive, family-like environment for the young women.
“It’s big enough to feel like a very busy household, but not so big it feels like an institution or a boarding house.”
Next steps
While a new Christchurch family home is firmly on the cards, Fiona says the longterm vision is to develop a billeting model to source, train and support families around New Zealand to have young mums and babies living with them.
“The House of Grace is wonderful for a season. It’s a perfect place for young women to stop, breathe and get set in the right direction. But they don’t stay long term, so we’re looking at working with families to potentially have a reach throughout far more of New Zealand.”
We are grateful to the Francis and Dianne Small fund which helped make this grant possible.