Struggling to feed her children
(Stock image)
Meresimani, an ex-government worker, “never had trouble with finances” until she suffered an injury and a messy divorce.
“Now sometimes I just don’t eat so I can have food for my boys,” she says. Meresimani worked in a government department for 16 years until she was injured.
After a legal battle during her divorce, she was left with few possessions and huge legal bills. Unwell, unemployed, and with two children to care for – one a baby and one an adult with an intellectual and physical disability – she says through tears, the only choice she felt she had at her darkest point was to give her “little boy away”.
“I was thinking there was a better place with other people who want to have a baby and they can’t; I was going to put him up for adoption. “I didn’t know what to do. Everything was cut off – my electricity was cut off… I was depressed and I couldn’t go out.” Falling behind in her rent and electricity, Meresimani soon received a letter from her real estate saying that if she didn’t pay quickly she would be evicted. “I had no idea where to go,” she says. “I sat down and I prayed.” The Department of Housing referred her to The Salvation Army, and Meresimani came into contact with Reuben Manmothe from the Emergency Relief Vulnerable Groups Program. The program provides free emergency relief for families and individuals at risk of homelessness by assessing their situation, exploring options to address the issues involved and, when necessary, offering financial assistance.
In Meresimani’s case, Reuben worked with her to help her pay her rental arrears and secure a cheaper rental property that was more appropriate for her disabled eldest son. “The Salvation Army is so good, they are like an angel to me,” says Meresimani of the assistance she has received, which has also included food vouchers, help with bill payments and working with Reuben to apply for NSW Housing. Still unable to work, Meresimani survives on the single mother’s payment. “Sometimes we go without milk, meat, sometimes I just don’t eat so I can have food for my boys,” she says. “I just cook whatever is there. I make sure we have bread and peanut butter so my boys can eat. “My life is tough, but I am so happy that I have a little boy who makes me happy and people around me who are kind.
“These people saved my life. And Reuben is still trying to help me.” At times, she says, “I cry for joy because I found relief”.
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