Come on in: Fiona Chique welcomed people into her new house. Photo: Aidan Briggs
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
Flood victim Fiona Chique recently invited Rochester community members into her house as a way to celebrate people moving back into their homes after the floods.
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The viewing took place at 20 McKenzie St, Rochester, on Saturday, April 20.
“I think it’s important to spread hope, and I’d like to think people seeing my house might make them feel hopeful about getting back home and what that might look like as well,” she said.
“It’s been a really hard time for Rochy since the floods and I think it’s good to celebrate these happier milestones in town.”
House viewing: Fiona Chique and Katy Wileman were excited to show the community the new house. Photo: Aidan Briggs
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
Southern Cross Transportables’ Katy Wileman, who helped Ms Chique build and design her house, said people loved seeing inside the home.
“(The day) was really, really nice, and it was all so positive. There was not one negative thing said. I’m so glad we did it,” she said.
“It was such a good thing for Fiona and for Rochester. We even had people from Echuca come across and have a look.”
Celebration: Homeowner Fiona Chique and Southern Cross Transportables’ Katy Wileman were pleased to host a viewing of the new house. Photo: Aidan Briggs
Photo by
Aidan Briggs
Ms Wileman said it was a really good chance for the community to make decisions about their own homes.
“A lot of people didn’t realise that we built those sorts of homes, so that was good for us, but for Fiona, it was good to be able to share this important memory with people,” she said.
“The whole day had this really positive feeling around. It wasn’t doom and gloom. It was just people who were really excited to talk about what they liked in the house.”
Ms Chique and Ms Wileman barely had a moment to catch their breath as people poured in throughout the day.
“We were so busy because people really wanted to talk and sort of exchange ideas and even talk about what each other was going through,” Ms Wileman said.
“It was just a really nice feel for the whole thing.”
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