Hi, my name is Ben. I'm the proud husband of Liz and father of Zoe. I've always considered myself lucky and relatively safe... that was until 4am on Saturday, April 12th.

We were asleep in our home on Phillip Island, when I was awoken by odd noises behind me. At first I thought it was Liz or Zoe, but when I opened the door to the living room, the lights were off, and I could hear noises coming from the garage. As I approached, I could see... someone... in the drivers seat of one of our cars. I ran into the garage, yelled, and watched them reverse the car out of the driveway and speed off up the street. And that's when I realised that the only way they could reverse the car so quickly, was because our other car was already gone. They also stole our house keys, and my Xbox - the latter of which is a really minor inconvenience, but serves as a reminder that they were IN our house and could've done so much worse.

It was one of the most creepy and violating experiences we've ever had, but we are safe and unharmed (at least physically) - which is the only thing that's important.

BUT. This happened at a really difficult time for us. We are struggling financially, and the excess for the two cars plus home will be a huge blow that will take a while to recover from. I literally just put $600 onto my credit card earlier today, to then have to pay $600 for new locks & keys. Plus, the trauma we are collectively feeling is going to be another challenge to overcome in what is a very challenging time because of a number of factors.

I've never asked anyone for anything like this before. But I figure this is as good a time as any. So. If you feel like donating to help us recover more quickly, then we'd be eternally grateful.