Eloise Fraser

When I made the decision to become a host in 2004, I was living out of home, studying at University and working part time. Luke was 12, and slept on the couch until we finally moved. He now has full control of the spare room, known in our house as ‘Luke’s room’. Over the years, Luke has become a part of our lives – his relationship with both me and my husband, Joel, has continued to strengthen, and we all look forward to our weekends together.

We were very proud to have Luke attend our recent wedding. We have become close friends with his parents and siblings and it was wonderful to have him and his family at such a special event in our lives.

In the years that have passed since we first began hosting, our weekends have changed, as have we. We now all choose to watch the same DVD’s instead of only watching kid flicks and we now stay up a little later and sleep in a little longer. However, some things have stayed the same - we still enjoy having dinner with friends and family, renovating the house and, of course, any trip to Bunnings is always appreciated!

Luke has always been very popular with our friends and family – they never fail to ask about him if they haven’t seen him in a while. One couple has even made a ramp to ensure that their house is wheelchair accessible for him. Hosting Luke has not only been a positive experience for us but also for our families, friends and our wider community.

We have loved being hosts, and have enjoyed growing with Luke – we look forward to many more years of hosting and continuing our relationship with Luke and his family.