Turia's christmas miracle
Turia Pitt has revealed what life was like for her 12 months ago when she and her family were caught right in the middle of the devastating bushfires that plagued much of Eastern-Australia.
Turia and her fiancee Michael Hosking, along with their son Hakavai, 3, live in New South Wales’ south coast - located in an area that was heavily impacted by the fires.
"I watched, my mouth agape, as two angry plumes from the fires north and south of us joined together over Mollymook Beach. And then, the power went out," she shared on Instagram.
She detailed the feeling of seeing her home becoming eerily quiet, "an apocalyptic quiet," she said.
"It's been a tough few weeks for me emotionally. I've had to focus on not letting my emotions and own experiences get the better of me."
"I'm exhausted. I feel like I've done 10 marathons. And we can't relax because it's only the start of summer, and it's not over yet. So just like in a marathon, I've realised I have to pace myself."
One positive outcome from the catastrophic event was the hope Turia gave hundreds of thousands of her followers.
Turia decided to start up organisation Spent With Them to help communities affected by the bushfire.
"Spend your money with the people and the communities who really, truly need it. They need you. We need you,” she wrote.
The page quickly went viral, with thousands of page follows overnight.
Quickly it became a hub for some of the creative, handy and essential goods made by the people who were struggling most.
Turia told Now To Love she was grateful for the support.
"When we first started out, it was in response to the hectic bush fires in the towns around where I lived. It was pretty disastrous, so I wanted to profile the business people from those areas so others could find out about their business and help to support the local economy."
"When COVID happened we realised [Spend With Them] was uniquely placed to profile businesses that have suffered from [the pandemic]," Turia explained.
"We could share stories and businesses from small independents and encourage people to do their shopping through them."
Turia is encouraging everyone to spend their Christmas money on small businesses.
"Not to be too altruistic about it, but I personally feel better about the purchases I've made when I know the money I've spent is actually supporting a real person. Not a giant conglomerate," she said.