A Cork mother has told of her dread at the prospect of her family becoming homeless in less than two weeks, writes Robert McNamara of the Evening Echo.
Marie O’Sullivan — who is in permanent employment — and her husband, seven-year-old daughter and 16-year-old son face becoming homeless on March 15 after they were told that they must leave their private rented accommodation and do not have anywhere else to go.
The family have been privately renting a property for the last five years, but the landlord is now selling the house.
They cannot find suitable affordable accommodation where their kids have grown up and currently go to school.
Ms O’Sullivan’s husband is currently unable to work due to illness but has previously been in steady employment.
Ms O’Sullivan said she will have to present her family as homeless at a local charity and move all of their possessions to family members’ homes if a solution is not found before her lease is terminated.
She has set up a GoFundMe page to raise awareness of her plight as she feels that her voice is not being heard by authorities.
“I had no intention of taking money from anyone but I thought, ‘how can I highlight this?’ How can I bring this story to the forefront so people are aware that we’re not just numbers or statistics, we are real families that this is happening to,” she said.
“We’ve been on the housing list for 13 years. Surely that should meet the criteria to be housed.”
“We’re grown-ups and this is hell for us, but when your children are coming to you and asking questions that you don’t have answers to, that’s the hardest part. I’m teaching my kids that you go to work, you work hard, you pay your bills, you treat people with respect and you get on in life.”
Now they were losing their home contradicts everything she ever taught them.
She said the situation has had an adverse affect on her children who are worried about what will happen to their family.
“[My daughter] is scared because this word ‘homeless’, it doesn’t mean anything to her, but it’s the fear of the unknown. No seven-year-old should ever even have to comprehend this situation. When we’re going to work, we can’t leave our kids alone in a hostel or hotel room. Nobody can come over to mind them. It has really put our lives on hold.
“I don’t even blame Cork City Council, it’s the whole system. The Government has got it wrong. I feel we are just numbers. We’re not people, we don’t have a voice. My children are not statistics, they’re my children and I have to fight for them, but nothing is working.”
“It’s looking more and more like we have to come to terms with the fact that we are going to Drinan Street (HSE homeless services) on March 15 and will be presenting ourselves as homeless, we don’t have any other option. We’ve exhausted them all.”
This article first appeared in today’s Evening Echo.
