Lena Tupua's typical day begins at around 5am and often stretches past midnight. As the founder of the volunteer-run charity Hands, Hearts, Hope, she is constantly coordinating her team, sorting donations, packing hampers, taking calls, and delivering meals and supplies to up to 150 rough sleepers across Melbourne.
It is an exhausting, unpaid schedule, but Ms Tupua told news.com.au that homelessness does not operate on standard corporate hours. "Homelessness is not a nine-to-five issue," she said.
Award Recognition
Ms Tupua has just been named Australia's inaugural Bunnings Community Legend, an initiative recognising everyday people who make a genuine difference in their local communities. She was chosen from more than 80 nominees across the country and will receive a $10,000 donation to her cause, along with a $1,000 Bunnings voucher.
Bunnings Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Melissa O'Neill said Ms Tupua embodies the spirit of the awards. "Every community has people who quietly step up for others without expecting recognition," she said. "The Bunnings Community Legends Awards are about celebrating those individuals and the incredible impact they have on the people around them."
Personal Journey
Ms Tupua formally founded Hands, Hearts, Hope a year ago, but her outreach work began long before that. Having experienced homelessness herself, she knows the challenges of sleeping rough. She arrived in Melbourne from New Zealand at age 21 with her young son after fleeing severe domestic violence. She knew no one, had nowhere to go, and had very little money.
"The people who helped me survive were people society often judges - homeless people, street people, sex workers, people struggling with alcohol and drugs and people who themselves were doing life hard," she said. "They protected me. They taught me how to be street wise, where to find help, how to stay safe and how to survive in a city I knew nothing about. I never forgot that."
Returning the Favour
Over the next 25 years, Ms Tupua built a life in Australia before moving back to New Zealand. When she returned to Melbourne four years ago and saw the growing number of people sleeping on the streets, she felt compelled to give back to those who helped her at her lowest point.
No two days look the same for Ms Tupua. Often after a busy day, she heads back out to sit with people, listen to their stories, hug them, cuddle their support animals, take photos, and form genuine connections. "I remember one woman saying to me, 'I love having my photo with you ... but why would you want to be photographed with me? I'm homeless. I'm dirty and I smell. Why?'" Ms Tupua said. "And that broke my heart. Because no human being should ever feel they are unworthy of kindness or connection."
Future Goals
The biggest hurdle facing Hands, Hearts, Hope is that it is not funded. Ms Tupua's dream is to open a 24-hour community hub to give people a safe place to go whenever they need. A secure place to leave belongings, safe from theft or being moved on, somewhere to get warm, have a meal, watch TV, or use the bathroom.
"Society often judges people experiencing homelessness because they are forced to defecate in alleys, behind buildings or wherever they can find privacy," Ms Tupua said. "But what many people do not understand is that after a certain hour public toilets close and there is literally nowhere else for them to go. That is the harsh reality of homelessness."
Call for Compassion
Ms Tupua urges people to look at homelessness differently, with more compassion and empathy. She points out that many Australians live pay to pay and are only one or two life events away from crisis. "The people we meet on the streets are not invisible, and they are not defined by homelessness," she said. "They are someone's mother, father, sister, brother, son or daughter. They are human beings with stories, hopes and struggles, deserving of dignity, compassion and kindness - and they matter."
