Never judge a book by the cover…
Josea
Josea
Josea is one of our shining stars. We feel very honoured to know this beautiful warm, compassionate and motivated young man. Although it didn’t start out that way.
One morning Josea rocked up to The MaraWay. He had decided enough was enough and needed to change his life. When he was 16 he was left for dead in a street fight. It took him 6 months to learn to walk again. He’d burnt his bridges with his family and was alone without support or direction.
Josea, like many other young men, had lost his way. At just 22 years of age he had already experienced such dark moments he thought suicide was the only option – not once but twice.
But something triggered a change of heart and gave him the guts to help himself. When he arrived at the Community Hub, we didn’t judge. We showed respect and told him we believed in him – and he changed.
Today, he is one of our star performers. We took him under our wing and helped him find purpose and confidence. His family is bursting with pride. Josea has taught us so much about how to change lives, and likewise, we have helped him to change his.
That’s what we’re here for. To help people change their lives.
Josea is now working in the hospitality industry after being given an opportunity by Top End Consulting, one of The MaraWay Partners. He is also helping to change other lives by mentoring young people at The MaraWay.
Let’s not kid ourselves, not all stories have a happy ending, but we regularly see people like Josea begin helping others too. It’s contagious, in a good way.
It’s called The MaraWay.
And Josea is not a one-off.
Malcolm
Malcolm had been aimlessly walking the streets for days when he stumbled into our Community Hub. He was clearly agitated so we calmed him down and listened to his story.
Turns out, he’d been released from jail and needed his meds. He had been dropped off in Cairns, but his home was in Bowen. He had no resources, no support and was ill. He had been on the streets for 4 days – no food, no meds.
We called on various services to get him the medical support he needed. We helped him with his fare back to Bowen, gave him something to eat, then put him on the bus home where he had the support to help rebuild his life.
It’s just what we do – help people to help themselves.
Then there’s Pete.
Pete
Pete was a tad naughty in his early years. Actually, Pete was a very bad boy and spent a lot of time in jail, but that was a long time ago. Even Pete will say there’s no excuses for his string of misdeeds.
You might say being kickedout on the streets at the age of 12 by his parents wasn’t the best start in life, and might be one of the reasons Pete snowballed into catastrophe for many years. But he’s on the straight and narrow now.
Although life isn’t a bed of roses for Pete.
Today, he’s in his mid-fifties, has few friends, he’s living in crisis accommodation, and has some serious health issues.
But he’s not alone. We’re working with him step by step to help him find some purpose in life. One of the things that we love about Pete is that despite all the pain and adversity, he still has a robust sense of humour and can find the funny side of life.
So we love to have a laugh with him.
That’s The MaraWay.
Everyone we work with has a story. Some have had terrible luck, horrific tragedies, or simply made poor choices. And every single one of them has the same desire for happiness and goodness, like the rest of us.
Everyone deserves a chance to turn their lives around if they are willing to make the effort.
That’s why you too should consider helping The MaraWay to help them, help themselves.
