Kickstart for Kids and scholarships funded by Bird in Hand help education dreams of Billie O’Toole and Zandra Martin

Growing up in troubled homes, Billie O’Toole and Zandra Martin never imagined the lives they now have ahead of them – thanks to local charity Kickstart for Kids.

Kickstart for Kids success stories Zandra and Billie, who are now both in jobs and will start tertiary study next year. Picture: Emma Brasier

Growing up in troubled homes, Billie O’Toole and Zandra Martin never imagined the lives they now have ahead of them.

Thanks to local charity Kickstart for Kids – and scholarships funded by Adelaide Hills winery Bird in Hand – the pair have completed Year 12 at prestigious Scotch College, and will start university degrees next year.

Ms Martin, 18, said she was raised in a “broken home” and felt “unloved” as a young child, but Kickstart for Kids has helped her fullfill her potential.

Kickstart for Kids success stories Zandra and Billie, who are now both in jobs and will start tertiary study next year. Picture: Emma Brasier

“Kickstart has done so much for me, it has become a family to me and honestly wouldn’t know where I would be without them,” said Ms Martin, who will continue her studies at Adelaide University.

“I went from being an angry depressed child who constantly acted out to seek attention to a confident individual who finally believes that she is capable of being loved respected.”

Ms O’Toole, whose foster dad is Kickstart founder Ian Steel, said she came from a “dysfunctional family living in extreme poverty”. She said the charity “probably saved my life”.

“Not only has it financially supported me and helped me get one of the best educations in Adelaide... but it’s also helped me develop into the person I am today,” said the teenager, who will study nursing at Flinders University, with the aim of working in remote areas of Australia, helping sick babies and their mothers.

As well as providing school breakfast and lunch programs, the charity supports students from lower socio-economic back­grounds through mentoring and the Camp KickStart school holiday program.

The Advertiser Foundation’s Christmas Kids Appeal, in partnership with Bird in Hand and Foodland, will help SA’s disadvantaged and vulnerable children, including those whose homes on the River Murray are threatened by floodwaters.

Building on the foundation’s traditional toy appeal, this year's campaign will help put festive food on their tables as well as Christmas gifts.

Mr Steel urged South Australians to support the appeal, which will help 650 children this festive season.

Readers can donate to The Advertiser Foundation Christmas Kids Appeal here, or you can post a cheque or money order to The Advertiser Foundation, GPO Box 339, Adelaide SA 5000.