Movers and developers come to the party to help hospice in free house giveaway
Tuesday, 16 March 2021
An arrangement to give away one house surplus to requirement will help a hospice to keep its patients comfortable in their final hours.
The former owners of the two-bedroom weatherboard house in Lower Hutt, the Johnson family, organised to give it away for free after its section at 35 Rata St, Naenae, was earmarked for development.
A condition of the giveaway was a donation to Te Omanga Hospice and that’s exactly what happened, and them some.
Not only was an undisclosed donation made by the new owners, but the developers, Faisandier Group, and House moving company, Quality Demolition, each chipped in with $5000. The extra donations were announced on Tuesday when the house was removed from its foundations to be transplanted by truck and trailer to a new property in Maungaraki in Lower Hutt’s western hills.
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Te Omanga Hospice chief executive Biddy Harford said the donation would make a big difference for the people in the hospice’s care. A patient’s care costs about $1500 a day.
Harford said the arrangements had come as a surprise last month.
“I read it in the Dom Post – that was the first I heard about it. I called [Faisandier Group] about it to ask what was happening.”
Faisandier Group director Paddy Faisandier said it was a good outcome for everyone involved – the house would get new lease on life and the hospice could continue its work.
Houses at three surrounding properties has also been bought by the company and will make way for 20 townhouses.
The house’s former owner Benjamin Johnson founded the The Free Store in Wellington, which rescues food from cafes and restaurants at the end of each day and gives it away for free.
“I guess I have got a bit of a history ensuring that things that are fit for use, whether that is food or clothing or in this case a house, gets utilised, rather than being wasted,” he told Stuff last month.