A BARDON family is thanking God and the generous people of the inner-Brisbane Jubilee parish for the Christmas gift of a lifetime – a $40,000 deposit on a new house.
Jason and Chernika Hansen have just signed a contract on their new home at Springfield into which they will soon move with five-year-old daughter Eloise.
Their success has been made possible by the Jubilee parish’s generous and creative response to the challenge young families face in saving enough money for a deposit into the current high-priced housing market.
This response, which aims to also help other similar young struggling families, is known as the Jubilee Head Start Project.
As parish priest Fr Peter Brannelly explains, the generosity of longtime parishioners Jim and Phyllis Quinn was crucial to helping the Hansens.
“Jim died in 2002 and in December 2008 we celebrated the funeral rites of Phyllis at Sacred Heart Church, Rosalie,” Fr Brannelly said.
“The Quinns generously bequeathed their home to our Jubilee parish.
“In other times and in other circumstances the parish would have sold the house to repay our debts.
“But, because of parishioners support of our planned-giving program, we have the ability to use the Quinns’ generosity to make a difference in the life of a young family starting out at the beginning of their journey.”
A key requirement of the arrangement was that the Hansens would become involved in the life of Jubilee parish.
“That was a real pleasure,” Mr Hansen said.
“Especially since I grew up in the area – went to the Catholic primary school and the Marist Brothers college in high school.
“Chernika and I got married in the Rosalie parish church.”
Mr Hansen has been able to provide his expertise as a nurseryman to landscape Church property in Bardon, Red Hill, Rosalie and Ashgrove.
He said what the Church had done for his family was “a huge thing”.
“We would never have got into a home of our own without this help,” he said.
“Our family owes the parish a lot.”
A “happy coincidence” is that Fr Mauro Conte, parish priest of Springfield, west of Brisbane, where the Hansens will make their new home, also sat on the selection committee that chose them as beneficiaries of the Head Start Project.
Fr Brannelly said the Hansens had been selected from six other young couples as the ones for whom the scheme “would make the biggest difference”.
“During the family’s time in the house others in the parish shared their knowledge on everything from budgeting to real estate,” he said.
“The couple had absolute freedom to do what they liked with the $40,000 put aside from rent they’d saved.
“It’s a good feeling for all involved that the family have now put the deposit on a home of their own.”
And the good news will keep rolling on in Jubilee parish.
“We’ve been challenged to look closely at the resources we have here and how they can make a difference in people’s lives,” Fr Brannelly said.
“Refugees and the homeless are other areas under consideration for our support.”
Meanwhile, as the Hansens move on, consideration is being given to the selection of another couple to take advantage of the Head Start Project.
“After talking with the pastoral council and finance council, we would like to offer Quinn House again to a young family,” Fr Brannelly said.
“It is specifically targeted to a young Catholic family looking to become first-home buyers and in need of a little breathing space to get their finances in order.”
Those who think they may be eligible or know someone who might be, can contact the Jubilee Head Start committee at the Jubilee parish office PO Box 1, Red Hill, 4059.
