"Sometimes all you need is another human being to talk to," is how father-of-two and 'househusband' Michael described his relationship with Home-Start. His 'other human being' for three years was a 69-year-old father-of-four and grandfather to eight, volunteer Carl.

"It made good sense financially for my wife, Linda to go back to work full-time after Kallee was born but it wasn't easy," says Michael.

"I'm a photographer but my eyesight was deteriorating, I couldn't drive any more and Linda suffered from post-natal depression. I was isolated at home and we were both very down."

Carl brought friendship into Michael's life: "Even though Carl was older than me we seemed to gel. We talked all the time: about sport, politics, anything and everything. We disagreed on some things so there were a few heated but friendly arguments. Carl is a man who has done so much in his life, he built my confidence and he became a friend. Our relationship was about trust."

Back to Top