By Melanie Rica
Leaving an unhappy home at a young age and having nowhere to sleep would cast a big shadow over – or even shatter – any child’s hopes for the future. But for Natasha Krause, now 24, not even finding herself at rock bottom could stop her from chasing her dreams, getting back on her feet and even opening her own cleaning business in Gordon Park.
Only 15 when she left home, Natasha was living on the streets until police contacted Brisbane Youth Service (BYS) who took her to a youth shelter in Windsor. Since then, the BYS have been working hard with Natasha through a youth development worker to help her reach her aspirations. She has completed two out of seven weeks of a certificate in small business management and her second week running her business, Cruzie Cleaning.
“I was sick of sitting on my arse all day, so that motivated me to do something,” Natasha says. She is now part of the champions program at the BYS and is a role model to others who come through the organisation.
“I’ve finally gotten to a place of happiness,” she says.
BYS fundraising and marketing manager Richard Langford praised Natasha for her progress in the eight years she has been with the service. “Now she has the ability to run her own business,” he says.
Mr Langford says each new client that BYS looks after is assessed on their physical and mental health. “We try to get them into stable accommodation for a six to 12 month period so they gain a tenancy history,” he says.
“We find out their hopes and inspirations and work with them.”
Natasha says the thing that helped her through was knowing there were other people worse off than her and she has this advice for others going through similar situations: “Be yourself … you don’t need to be anyone else.”
he says it is very important to “be honest with yourself and know when there is something wrong”.
• |The Brisbane Youth Service (BYS) works with homeless or at-risk young people aged 12 to 25 years. For help, ring BYS on 3252 3750 or go to their website – www.brisyouth.org
Been there, done that ... Natasha Krause looks over a photo at BYS of homeless Brisbane people living under a bridge on the river.
