“You come in to do your bit on this project, and pretty quickly, you realise this build is extremely special,” said, Suzan Bichsel from Hardings – a Henley supplier which has been a long-standing supporter of the Good Friday Appeal Home.
“You know the Good Friday Appeal Home helps to support sick children at The Royal Children’s Hospital and that stays in your mind during the build. It makes you proud to be part of this wider community of volunteers. And if I could sum up what the project means to me, it would be happiness.”
That is the feeling sitting behind the 2026 Good Friday Appeal (GFA) Home, a build that has once again brought together Henley, Villawood and a wide network of volunteer tradies and suppliers to create something that reaches well beyond the site itself.
This year’s home, the Lancaster 440-D47 from the Henley Mainvue Collection, has been built at Alamora in Tarneit and will go under the hammer on Good Friday, with proceeds supporting The Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal. For the dozens of people behind it, this project is not only about building a beautiful family home but also being part of something that helps funds world-class care for sick children.
Darren Dean, Henley General Manager says, “When people ask how one house can make a difference, the answer is simple. It is not the house, it is the people who built it.”
For all the quality and scale of the home, those involved in the build say the real story is in the volunteer tradies and suppliers who have given their time, materials and effort to help make it happen. It is that generosity, repeated across the job from beginning to end, that gives the home its deeper meaning.
For more than 20 years, Henley supplier Knauf Gypsum has been supplying and installing the internal linings of the GFA Home. “What impresses me the most is seeing how many people just pitch in,” Mick Brown, State Contracting Manager, Knauf Gypsum said.
“Everyone is flat out, everyone has their own jobs on, however people still find a way to help. No one does it for the recognition. They just know it is a good cause and they want to be involved.”
That spirit was front and centre at the recent ‘GFA Supplier and Tradie Thank You Brunch’, where the people behind the build were recognised for the role they have played in shaping this year’s home and supporting the cause behind it. For many, it was a chance to stand back, look at the finished result and reflect on what their contribution has helped make possible.
“For me, it is knowing the work goes somewhere important,” said David Hooper, Commercial Manager, Victoria, SMEG. “You might only do one part of the job, however when everyone’s part comes together, it turns into something that can help families at a really hard time. That is a good thing to be part of.”
For Braydon McHugh, General Manager, B & D Plumbing, a supplier and father, the cause lands in an especially personal way. “As a dad, you cannot help but think the unthinkable,” Braydon said. “You hope you never need a place such as the Royal Children’s Hospital, however knowing it is there for families in those moments means a lot. Being able to help in some small way through this build makes it feel personal. You think about your own kids and what it would mean if it were you.”
Before auction day arrives, the 2026 Good Friday Appeal Home is already carrying the mark of the people who built it, not only in the work itself, but in the care behind it. Year after year, despite the pressure of their own businesses and schedules, tradies and suppliers continue to show up when it matters most. That commitment is part of what has made this project so enduring and why its impact reaches far beyond the bricks and mortar.
To every tradie, supplier and supporter who helped bring the GFA Home to life, thank you for showing what generosity in action truly looks like!
The no reserve auction will kick off at 2pm on Good Friday at 73 Resort Boulevard, Alamora Estate, Tarneit.
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