Rachel Cook, 18

I was born in Lismore in 2001, number four of six kids.

After my arrival, my parents had my sister, Violet, and then my youngest brother. Not long after he was born, my mother was sent to jail and while she was in prison, my dad died. Violet and my baby brother went to live with our nan, while the rest of us were passed around among other relatives.

It was a hard time. We tried to be there for each other but we were young. I didn’t like school because I knew I wasn’t going to be there very long. I’d make friends for a few months and then my family wouldn’t want me, so I’d get moved on.

When I was about six, I got a call saying Mum was out of jail and living in Adelaide with a new boyfriend, so Violet, my little brother and I went to join her. It wasn’t a stable home because my mum’s boyfriend was very abusive. When something bad happened, we’d just get a bag of clothes and leave. I went to 15 different primary schools.

After a while, my mum, and my little brother and sister and I got on a bus and came to Brisbane. I was staying with Mum and everything was fine. We had our ups and downs but it was stable. I started at a local high school and stayed there the whole way through. I liked art … and when I was in Year 10, I realised I wanted to be someone. I had goals that I wanted to achieve. I wanted to get out of the cycle. But when I got to the end of Year 11, there was a domestic violence incident. I was assaulted and I had to get out. Violet came with me because she didn’t want to stay in that environment. I was only 16 but I didn’t want to be a part of it and I wanted to protect my sister.

I didn’t know where we’d be sleeping each night. Sometimes we were couch surfing. Sometimes we’d sleep in my car. We’d park somewhere we thought safe. Going to school at the same time was hard. It was a tough time.

At school I hid that I was homeless because I was embarrassed. When I was very desperate, I went to stay with a relation, but her partner was also violent and one day tasered me. I wanted to give up then, because it was really hard for me to concentrate on going to school and look after my sister while trying to find somewhere to stay.

When I actually broke down and told my friends, some of them did understand but some didn’t because they’d never had that lifestyle. We survived on my Centrelink payment, which was about $300 to $400 a fortnight for two of us. We lived on muesli bars, chips and packet food – stuff we could take to school and wouldn’t go rotten.

If I was couch surfing, I’d shower at my friend’s house but some days I’d go without showers. Not having access to sanitary items was one of the hardest things. I’d have to steal them or use toilet paper. I couldn’t really study.

I’ve always wanted to do social work and a degree in social work or psychology. That’s my dream. My goals at school were to be the first out of my family to graduate high school – to be the first person to do something.

I did graduate, so that was a massive achievement.

In January, the government found us a house. It was the best feeling – having my own bed, my own toilet; just sitting on a lounge watching TV; being able to sit and relax and not having to think: I’ve got to find somewhere to stay tonight.

Our house is in a well-known drug area so we just keep to ourselves. There were knives and rubbish and food and trash in the backyard when we moved in. The neighbours try to talk to us. “Do you have a cigarette? Do you have milk?” I get intimidated, but what can you do?

A police officer friend reached out to Rochelle Courtenay from Share the Dignity and she organised all the stuff for our house – her volunteers found furniture and utensils – and she gave me a job. I started coming to the office as an intern and later a proper staff member.

Violet’s going really well. She’s doing Year 11, works at McDonald’s and she’s at TAFE doing criminology and justice. I love working with Rochelle. It makes me feel good to speak about it now – to think my story might help someone else.