Business helps family have a magical Lorne holiday

FIVE Lorne businesses generously offered their support to the Magical Getaway Foundation to give a Melbourne family their first ever holiday.

The Magical Getaway Foundation (MGF) is the only national charity dedicated to social tourism – the foundation describes this as “providing access to breaks away from home for people who would otherwise be excluded”.

MGF gifts fully fund the holidays to eligible children and their families. In return, the recipients share their story with the foundation.

Annalise and her four sons, Emmett, Joseph, Geoffrey and Jethro, stayed at the Mantra Lorne from June 16-21.

Before each holiday, the Foundation requests a shopping list from the recipients, and Foodworks Lorne donated a $200 voucher to support MGF with the family’s food costs.

While in Lorne, Annalise and her sons visited the Lorne Sea Baths, Otway Fly Treetop Adventures and the Great Ocean Road Wildlife Park.

“Thank you so much for everything this will certainly be some wonderful memories for them to keep for a lifetime,” Annalise said.

“This has also helped with our healing as I believe that with each great memory puts a brick in the wall that helps build a wall away from the trauma these boys have experienced and this in particular has given many different experiences, knowledge and memories that I by myself would never have been able to give them.”

MGF says that research indicates that holidays benefit individuals, as well as the wider society, because they improve wellbeing and reduce stress, increase self-esteem and confidence, strengthen family communication and bonding, provide new skills, widen perspectives and enhance employability and give long-lasting, treasured memories.

This results in happier, stronger families and a more inclusive society with increased community participation and decreased social isolation.