Christine is the kind of person who makes you feel excited about life. Her enthusiasm and positive attitude make you want to seize the day! After an encounter with Christine you simply can't help but see things in a new and more positive light.

Christine's brightness today is a contrast to the dark days that she and her family have endured in the past.

Christine was born very premature. She spent the first 18 months of her life in hospital and during this time had major surgery, primarily on her hips. Because of her poor hips Christine spent most of her toddler years in calipers. Now 45, she has already had two hip replacements and is awaiting a knee replacement too.

Christine not only had to endure her physical disabilities, she was also born with an intellectual disability. In later years Christine developed schizophrenia on top of all this. She is unable to live alone and requires ongoing support to ensure her safety and well-being.

Fortunately for Christine, a vacancy became available in one of our group homes in Sydney. Christine is now an extremely happy member of the House With No Steps family.

Christine's siblings know only too well the struggles faced by families of people with disabilities in finding suitable living arrangements for them.  Christine's sister Helen tells us, "Everything changed when Christine was accepted into House With No Steps. She has moved forward in leaps and bounds." 

Although Christine still depends on others for many of the things she does in life, she has progressively developed more and more independence. 

At House With No Steps our core purpose is to empower people to decide what they want for themselves and strive for their best possible quality of life. We put the individual at the centre of the decision-making process, with their families and friends close to them. 

When you ask Christine what is important to her she will tell you, "My independence, shopping for my room and the colour pink. I love shopping for bright coloured things for my room because they make me happy inside." 

Christine works in a HWNS packaging business in Minchinbury two days a week, which helps to pay for her decorating pursuits.

Christine has learned how to budget, which she now does every Tuesday. To her great enjoyment, she then heads off to window shop for items to decorate her room; she compares prices and then makes decisions based on what she wants and what she can afford. 

Witnessing Christine's happiness when she shows visitors her room really brings home the value of this approach. She literally shines with pride.

We are committed to seeing that each and every one of our clients reaches their personal best. And we know how important increased levels of independence are in this pursuit.

The progress that Christine has made has directly improved the quality of her own life and has had a huge impact on the lives of her family and friends too.

Supporting House With No Steps plays an integral part in turning lives around.

More about what Christine likes:

 "I like dogs, shopping, music and live music shows. I look forward to special occasions, especially Christmas, Easter and my birthday. My favourite colour is pink. I also like conversations."

Christine loves ABBA, Guy Sebastian and the Spice Girls. She performed a song by the Spice Girls at the 2009 House Idol (link to more information), "Stop".

There is a service dog "Robby" who comes to work with one of Christine's colleagues in the HWNS packaging business in Minchinbury. She just adores him. Christine tells us, "I love Robby and he loves me. He has a wet nose, licky tongue, soft fur, beautiful nature and waggly tail."