It was Christmas Eve 2019, my local MP John Gardner phoned me early in the morning, asking if I’d drive to Lobethal to meet the Prime Minister Scott Morrison. John couldn’t find any victims of the Cudlee Creek Fires as they’d all left the Hills. It made sense – our homes had been destroyed.
When he phoned I was packing my bags to meet up with the extended family at Aldinga Beach for a couple of days for Christmas. It seemed at the time to be just too much, so I said ‘no’ to the invitation, put the phone down and kept packing. I told my husband who said, ‘you need to go, go and meet the PM’. So up the freeway to the Adelaide Hills I went.
A few other victims who’d lost their homes were also at the ‘Recovery Centre’. After the VIPs including local MPs and the Premier Steven Marshall, met privately in a side room, the PM came out. John introduced me in my role at Second Chances SA helping the children of prisoners, then suddenly four TV cameras were set on my black sandals, the only pair of shoes I had. They were the ones I wore the Friday morning our home of 32 years was destroyed. I felt like I was cocooned in a sensitive cloud of shock.
Scott, (Scomo) was warm and personable. He asked if we had insurance and I expressed how I’d never been a victim before and how I found it difficult to receive help. He said, ‘Helen it is your turn now to receive’. I mentioned I knew his Pastor from SA, Brad Bonhomme, and he said he was seeing Brad the next day – Christmas Day – and he’d say hello. We hugged and that evening it was in the media across the nation on four stations.
I wanted to apologise, ‘I was not wearing make-up because it was destroyed in the fire.’ I forgot to say that.