Our Journey
We moved our kids to the foot of the hills wen we were living in idyllic beachfront location (smallest dingey house lol), after giving up trying to deal with the racism in the local school. I tried the next school with 80+ Blackfullas and told the principal exactly wat my issues were. Her response was “Well don’t expect no Aboriginal Programs here, we assimilate them, that’s wat we do.” And she repeated the last part again.
We literally went running, I took my boy to a school meeting with a sacred site on the grounds up in the hills. It was special to our tribe, the principal looked at my placid son and said U better not give me any trouble. Then began to tell me of all the bad stories and names of Koori students she taught. He has the kindest nature. So we got out of there fast too. I drove home crying cause I didn’t go off at the teacher. I was defeated.
We had no house to go to but the kids had to go, they couldn’t stay in that situation. So we joined our uncles under a tarp and a broken down caravan, 5 months pregnant and 2 sons in tow.
We showered in the Nimbin museum everyday, packed lunch from the bush, froze in winter (especially on toilet run at 1, 3 and 6 am lol being pregnant). The kids were happy so I thought I was too.
It was hard, we went back to our house for the holidays and I had a pull to get back to Stradbroke island, A BIG PULL.
We packed up and headed to the island. My logic was we could build from the rubbish dump. We’d been roughing it already in the bush with what we could gather.
Baby was coming soon so we had to set up in tents and get ready. The kids were happy to b on country away from the racism in Tweed Heads.
We had to shower at caravan parks and creeks, even the newborn. Having to take 4 5 kids, complete with baby bath under the arn into public toilets/showers was humiliating each and every time. We would stand around for hours doing washing at the laundromat and eat breakfast at bbq stops often.
3 babies later we had a huge shed, caravan, water tank and cleared a road to our special spot where we want to build. We had to move into a house because I have serious health issues made worse by having kids so close.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/673179429790935/media/albums (facebook group, im not able to log in)
We were homeless for 5 years in a tin shed that we built from the rubbish tip, with the caravan we slept in with 4 kids in total we payed $100 approx ($80 for the caravan and $30 for bolts big enough to join sleepers that were half in the ground). We won’t quit, we wont back down and when it gets hard we will sing out before we even start to fail because we know we have alot of brothers and sisters out there that get just how important this is. Against all odds we are still out bush, we are thriving and resisting in every possible way. We just need a bit of help to cope with the never ending oppressive measures imposed non stop making it hard for us to finally get the essentials in place. Ive been living in poverty since No Jab No Pay, they take away childcare making it impossible to run the home business as i was a foster parent and had two 3 yr olds at the time and running the business from home. Then they take away the lump sums so u cant have a car, u can hardly afford haircuts, clothes and outtings etc yet alone birthdays. Then they reduce us to nothing by taking $25/fn per child until your literally unable to afford to live. I saw this coming and started to work my arse off so we were no longer a victim to the way things were going.
After 10 years, we finally got 3km of roads cleared to the spot we always dreamed of living, the kids dad handed in his house, got a 4wd so we could get out here, built the house on our own with the 4 kids in tow everyday and i moved out of my house once the house was built. As soon as we got here the car broke down, quoted $5k by nissan but it turned out to be $8k and really affected us the whole time we have been here. We’ve never had any savings and never gotten ahead since. I got my home business started up again just before coming out here and that had to stop with the car taking all our funds. 2 years on we are determined now more than ever, working as a team to get back on top once and for all.
We got here just before the first lockdown and its been a non stop battle, as we make a home on untouched land. Its bn the hardest thing ive ever done and just as we hope things were about to ease up the mandates have us living on the poverty again. On the positive side, we are grateful we are here and not homeless again as we would have been if we were in a rental and unable to pay rent.
Warn out but def not defeated, we refuse to let any of this get us down or leave us feeling defeated and are calling out for support to help lighten the load. We are going to run a necklace making marathon, making 1 necklace a day (they take 5 hrs to make) for the next 30 days. To raise money to finally end all the power and water issues and ensure our families survival into the future out here on their ancestral lands. Regardless what the global dictators do, we will survive out here with water and power. True self determination and self sufficient for life.
Thank you so much to everyone who has kindly supported us and contributed to our fun raiser already, we have sent a limited edition necklace for supporters only out to everyone who chipped in to help out so far.
A few pics of our journey so far and a video to come
Can You Help Us Get Over The Line, Please?
The water journey has been epic, non stop issues and still we are no closer to having running water than we were 2 years ago wen we arrived. I’m not complaining, please don’t take it the wrong way. This is paradise and we have 3 5000ltr tanks but to keep enough water for 5 of us, 15 ducks and a mini food forest… it damn hard and almost makes me want to run away n not come back. To top it off we have the power issue too.
So the water story – we started out with a petrol powered fire fighting pump and 600m of lay flat non toxic food grade hose. It wasn’t cheap and we needed a lot to get up a steep 700m climb. It takes almost 2 hrs to go down to the water supply cos it’s so steep. We finally got it all set up, but it was 100m short with all the twists n turns. We bought another 150m of the same hose just to be sure with the firefighting nozzle too so we are prepared. Got it all connected, I was waiting at the top with the phone in my hand wishing and waiting for water to finally flow so we know our family will survive here forever. No such luck. No call to ask us it flowing n no water.
It reached 300m 🙄 . We got another pump to go half way up the hill to boost the pump at the creek. But when we got their to the pump at the creek it had seized because we forgot to cart housing down the hill to cover the pump from the weather. So at that point we gave up, we only have a small window of time to get things done. When Patrick (my childrens dad) is here and he works hard on the land all week from sun up to sun down. So I can imagine working on this kind of stuff would be the last thing he wanted to do after working in the hot sun all day everyday.
The boys and I started researching RAM pumps, which don’t require petrol and can run water up to about 300m. Thought if we could just get the water half way we can sort it from there. We bought the parts and copying YouTubers we built our own pump. That was a month ago and it’s impossible to get the set up needed down the hill with bub who can’t walk far on her own plus supplies and walk back up. It almost kills me hiking up the slope, it’s that steep. Anyways because of all the issues with water, I’ve lost the 100 lemon trees and 30 bush food trees I had stocked up to grow our food out here and start our roadside stall.
The power story – we started out with a generator 2 years ago, a solar panel and battery for the lights and the same for the fridge. Our old style washing machine died wen we got here so wen we had enough water we had to hand wash for a while. Then we got a 3kg twin tub and that just got too much not being able to wash anything bigger than a towel and handling every item to spin etc. So we saved for a front loader, but it didn’t work on our generator cos it was not sine wave. Anything with a digital display need pure sine energy supply, costing 3 times more than the one we had.
We tried a second hand front loader but realised it had same thing, small digital display so it didn’t work. Picked up a free 5kg washer but it didn’t work even though it just had the lights and a rough button. For 12 months we have been washing our clothes at the sister in laws in town and the blankets at the laundromat.
We now have 2 batteries set up to the fridge and still it only keeps food cold during the day in the freezer lol, I can’t even keep fruit and veg cold in the fridge overnight. So we can only buy wat we need and wen we need it or it’s just duck food. Then I researched wind turbines as we are up high and get good wind here. I bought a 3kva set up, with a pure sine inverter to run the washing machines and 16 batteries. We used an old extension chord to wire the turbine and jumper leads to make cables for the batteries. We even made 50 of our own copper connections and tried to set it up. Still no luck, back to YouTubers we go. But this generator is about to die now and with the vax mandates we have no idea what’s going on and are lucky to have food and the clothes on backs.
Seriously feeling burnt out and can’t even think about how we will get over the line after 2 years of constantly pushing forward no matter what we have to deal with. Being on my own most the time out here, homeschooling 3 with a 3 year old home too, our future is a lil uncertain with the loss of child support as the kids dad will be forced onto unemployment benefits after being given the ultimatum of getting vaxxed or being layed off. After 10 years with the same organisation, they have let him go just days before Xmas and our babies 3rd bday. We have no parents or in-laws and are the ones helping everyone else usually. That much so I’ve dropped the ball having my attention focused solely on helping others and not trying to sort this power and water issues.
Family Fun(d) Raiser
We are selling limited edition snake necklaces and bracelets that take hours to make, to raise much needed funds to become self sufficient as a family. This was a method taught to us by my late mother, now the kids have learnt it too.
We have come so far and going to do all it takes to finally get water and power on in the house we built on the childrens ancestral lands.
Love and thanks in advance
Kaiyu n Tribe 🔥🙏❤️💛🖤✨✨
To purchase please follow link to our fun raising page
Teamwork makes the dreamwork, please share far and wide.
https://fundrazr.com/11w6l3?ref=ab_bAx0w1
Please Help Us Mob Out Bush With Power N Water
Day 9 Update on our Necklace Making Marathon
#1 has been sent to brother Mark
#2 Sent to sister Jackie
#3 sent to sister Emma
#4 sent to brother Justin
#5a (bracelet) sent to sister Leanne
#5b (bracelet) being sent to brother Jack
#6 being sent to brother Jack
#7 being sent to brother Jack
#8a (bracelet) being sent to brother Jack
#9 being sent to brother Mark
#8b (bracelet) being sent to brother Mark
#9a (bracelet) promised to sister Loretta
#9b (bracelet) promised to sister Loretta
(2 bracelets are counted as 1 necklace)
https://fundrazr.com/11w6l3?ref=ab_bAx0w1
Big love Kaiyu n Tribe 🖤💛❤️🙏🔥✨✨✨✨
PS video of Our Journey Back To Kuntry, coming soon
thrivalinternational 
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