Alisha is a young First Nations woman from Wadawurrung country who experienced the impact of the housing crisis firsthand. Alisha was pregnant and experiencing homelessness, while fighting to get back on her feet.
“Coming from homelessness. Coming from living in a women’s refuge whilst pregnant, my incarceration, and also the instability of housing was hard. It really impacted my mental health” says Alisha.
“Not feeling like I had a place to call home. That was one of the hardest things for me.”
That’s when Alisha and her daughter were offered a long-term home in one of Uniting’s new community housing properties. Alisha felt the impact of a safe and stable home, right away.
“For me, the stability is one of the biggest things. Just being able to have a safe place to come back to at the end of the day, a place that I call home, was a big change in my life” says Alisha.
Having a safe place to call home allowed Alisha the space to develop positive routines.
“Moving now into my home has helped me a lot in my mental health and just the stability of my routine” says Alisha.
“Routine is a big thing for me and in parenting. In teaching my daughter schedules. Sleep time, bath time and breakfast schedules. All of it impacts her learning and development. Being able to have a place where I can instil a positive routine that is stable, it has benefited me and her really well.”
Community housing in an affordable, long term housing option for people on low incomes.
“It’s good how Uniting take 30% of a Centrelink payment for rent. It’s affordable and it doesn’t impact getting your next meal. You’re still left with a good amount of income to be able to survive” says Alisha.
Alisha’s art is a big part of her life. Her artwork showcases her personal experiences, connection to her Country and Wadawurrung language.
“With my art, it was hard to progress in it, because in the past I’ve never had a place where I could paint. It was always packed up in boxes and moved from here to there. It was always something I pushed aside because there was other stuff going on in life that had to take priority, like my housing instability” says Alisha.
Alisha’s home also provides a space for her to pursue her passion for art.
“I have so much space to be able to do my art. I get to come home and paint, and express myself, and share my story and my journey through my art. It’s helped me a lot within my career and within myself” says Alisha.
“My art’s become a great source of income for me and has created so many opportunities for me. I am working with great companies. I’ve had exhibitions in so many different places and to now working with Geelong football club.”
Alisha’s dreams of starting her own business and buying a home are close to coming true.
“We got approved for a home lean through IBA (Indigenous Business Australia) for a home lean, and we’re building up funds to have a deposit. It’s amazing that I’ve been able to go from being homeless to potentially being able to buy my own home. It’s crazy” says Alisha.
No matter what you’ve done or what you’ve been through, it doesn’t stop you from amounting to things. You put that effort in, and you will be able to do something positive with your life.
Alisha’s art is available to purchase through the torch project, which is a company that give incarcerated First Nations men and women an opportunity to sell their art with 100% of the sale price going directly to the artist.
