23/08/2026
At Surf For Kids, we pride ourselves on helping families quickly. In most cases, we can approve a request for funding in 24 hours and have the payment completed in 72 hours.
Occasionally, things take a lot longer, especially building projects, where we have to coordinate suppliers, trades and volunteers to help.
Our Director Mark has known the Stewart family for many years and helped provide therapy for their son Seb, back in the Board Meeting days.
Mum, Jen, approached Mark earlier this year to help her transform the courtyard area for their home into an area where they could receive therapy and play safely. Jen had some savings, but it was nowhere near what was needed, so Mark put the word out for volunteers and suppliers who might be interested in getting involved.
First hand up was Lio Tellan from Look Homes, who agreed to project-manage the whole job. With all his contacts, he secured a great team, and once body corporate and council approval was sorted, the project started to take shape.
We'd really like to thank them all:
* Project Manager - Lio Tellan, Look Commercial
* Excavations - Bebrok Excavations
* Pergola Design, Certification, Supply & installation - Southern Cross Sheds
* Concrete - Holcim
* Concrete Pumping - Meales Concrete Pumping
* Concreters - Jack of all Trowels
* AC disconnect & re-connection - Cool & Secure
* Mesh and concrete fixings - Lyndons Building & Construction Supplies
* Plumbing & Drainage - RK Plumbing & Gas Solutions
* Landscaping - CBL Landscaping
6 months later, we are done, and the transformation is outstanding.
This email from Jen sums it all up 😀
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
As Mark mentioned, our family includes 3 kids with autism, ADHD and hypermobility. I am a single mum. We experienced DV, so the kids all live with me full time; the 4 of us in a 3-bedroom townhouse. The youngest is not able to attend school, so I am currently out of work while we homeschool.
Our backyard was a dusty, unusable mess. The morning sun would hit the glass doors and heat up the whole house. We planned and saved over the past 3 years to add concrete and a patio roof, but the cost of this project increased faster than we could save the money to pay for it.
Then came Mark Skinner and his Surf For Kids team of knights in shining work boots. You transformed this space into something that feels amazing and extends the usable space in our home massively. The kids now have room to play, relax and do their therapy exercises. The house is no longer unbearably hot in the mornings, so we will save money on aircon costs. In the afternoon, the whole space is shaded so it is a comfortable place to move or just spread out.
The impact is that we have been able to relax more. There have been fewer meltdowns from the kids and the whole house feels more peaceful. Our visiting therapy assistant is happy to have a beautiful, cool space to work with the kids instead of the hot garage. The kids are more compliant in doing their exercises. My youngest is able to have her sensory needs met by rolling back and forth on a skateboard in the safety of a fenced-in yard. And I have somewhere to go when I am feeling exhausted or overwhelmed, and I need to be outside but still nearby the kids.
Thank you so much for giving your time, resources and expertise to help my family. This space will brighten our lives for years to come.
Warm regards, Jen.
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