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The bricks and mortar of a special housing development in Tea Tree Gully, South Australia, are being built on a foundation of love, hope, care and support laid down by the St John's Lutheran Church congregation.
With the assistance of an LLL Loan, St John's was able to undertake a groundbreaking project turning an unused car park at the back of the church into three specially-designed dwellings for use by Lutheran Disability Services, which provides services for people living with a disability in a Christian environment.
Built to the exacting specifications of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), the accommodation will house six NDIS participants, with quarters for a carer in each house included in the design.
The visionary project has the potential to serve as a model for other congregations around the country.
There are financial and missional benefits for St John's, which will derive a rental income from the development, while much-needed, purpose-built disability housing is made available for people in need.
St John's committee chairperson Carey Noack and committee member Stephen Pfeiffer have been key figures in helping get the project off the ground since the issue of how best to use the church-owned car park and an adjacent block of land was first broached in 2014.
Applying for appropriate permits, complying with local council regulations, dealing with builders and navigating NDIS specifications was a long and often complicated process – not to mention the impact of the pandemic - but the land was finally cleared last year with construction starting in March.
"I'd get up in church each week and say, 'It's going to start next week', but I stopped doing that after a while," Carey said, laughing.
"It's been a long journey, but it has always had the full support of the congregation.
"It's not just about building the houses; there is also a missionary aspect with the people that are going to be living here.
"They've been living in older accommodation that's no longer suitable and they just can't wait to get into a new home."
Carey is hopeful the first two houses will be completed in time for new tenants to move in early in 2024.
"I'd like to thank LLL for their support," Carey said.
"LLL could see the value in this financially and missionally and has been very helpful and flexible all the way through the process.
"There hasn't been a moment where I thought, 'Is it all going to fall apart?'
"It's been a really good partnership."
Photo: LLL Chief Relationship Officer Scott Ross was warmly welcomed on a site visit to the groundbreaking project at St John's Lutheran Church, Tea Tree Gully.
