Aunty needed company

When Coralie Ober needed a place to live fast, she was lucky that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Housing was there to help.

Coralie was living with her son in a small unit at Kangaroo Point when her mother, who was ill, moved from Hervey Bay to live with them.

“We needed a place that my mother could live in, bigger than the unit we were in, and definitely with no stairs,” Coralie said.

She applied for a house in late 1989, and pretty soon she and her family were tenants. She has been in the same place ever since.

“Just having a house that meant I knew that my mother would be safe, my son would be able to continue his education, and that I could go to work from was very important,” she said.

Over the years, the house has also seen a series of 'mass migrations' to Brisbane by a number of Coralie's different nieces and nephews who have come to Brisbane to study. When Coralie's mother passed away, the children decided that “Aunty needed company so a nephew came from down south to live with her and work”.

“It's great that the department recognises our cultural responsibilities not just to our immediate family, which is reflected in the design of the houses,” she said. They are now better designed to meet family needs which highlights the growth of the program over the 10 years that Coralie has been a tenant.

“I have been privileged to be part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Housing program,” Coralie said.