Where are they now?
One of the great pleasures of supporting young people is having the chance to revisit down the track and see how far they’ve come. There’s something extraordinary about knowing the stable foundation we helped provide offered a platform from which to shape a flourishing adult life.
We’re proud to profile some incredible young people who have used a Kids Under Cover studio as a launch pad to achieve their full potential, thriving as happy adults.
Sandi flips the script
Sandi describes her younger self as a chronic runaway kid. When things became too much at home, Sandi would leave.
She would hang out in parks for hours, or sleep at friends’ houses overnight. In hindsight, Sandi feels that she was definitely at-risk of becoming homeless when she was offered a Kids Under Cover studio.
These days, she takes any opportunity to give back to the organisation that helped her at such a critical time.
She is a regular volunteer and supporter for Kids Under Cover and even donated her second vehicle via the Donate Your Car program in 2023.
“I’ve got a new outlook on life. I count my blessings that I was able to live in a Kids Under Cover studio.”
Jesse's journey
Jesse grew up with foster parents in a family of eight in regional Victoria. He shared a room in a hectic house until he was 18.
In 2017, a Kids Under Cover studio gave him the space and relief he needed to reconnect with himself and focus on his studies.
“It let me focus and it let me escape emotionally draining situations. It was important in that way,” he says.
Skip to 2023 where Jesse is close to completing his third year studying medicine at Melbourne University and enjoying a placement in a prominent Melbourne hospital. He’s considering branching into orthopaedic surgery but hasn’t yet made his mind up. Whichever path he decides to take, there’s little doubt he’s headed for success.
Trang's new beginning
Growing up, Trang moved around in the foster care system to escape a traumatic upbringing at home.
When Kids Under Cover helped to connect her with supported accommodation, it was the first time she felt she had a stable home. “It was a place where I knew I would hear kind words and have a safe place to sleep at night. I felt loved.”
Trang, who now works as a court officer, has had her own home built for herself and her daughter.
“It’s filled with love and laughter, the opposite of what I had when I was her age. I hate to think what could have happened to me if Kids Under Cover hadn’t stepped in when they did.”
