KEY POINTS:
Three years ago, this peaceful rural property held a lifetime of promises for John and Samantha Sammut and their daughters Claudia and Courtney.
They had heard about the lifestyle blocks down elegant driveways lined with London plane trees.
Even the address "Twin Springs" had a nice ring to it as they have identical twin daughters. It was a move that was meant to be.
The Sammuts bought the property but, while waiting for the title to come through, life threw a nightmare into their dreams when Claudia, now aged 8, was diagnosed with a brain tumour.
In between 60 weekly visits to Auckland's Starship Hospital for post-operative chemotherapy, getting Courtney settled into school as a new entrant and dealing with their shared grief and adjustments, John and Samantha managed to get their home and its sleepout built and to embrace some of their love of the rural lifestyle.
At the time, the house project was a positive note in their lives and once finished has become a comforting retreat for John, who works in west Auckland, and for Samantha who works as a Child Cancer Foundation-funded teacher aide at Taupaki School to help Claudia make up for more than a year's lost schooling.
Says John, ``Having the house to build was all that kept us going at times.''
Claudia's long-term prognosis is unknown because her tumour could only be `debulked' and her condition is stable for the moment.
Now the Sammuts want to downsize to a smaller rural property, somewhere closer to the girls' school to consolidate their energies as a family and to have more time together.
It will, they hope, be a time of personal and emotional renewal and, to their huge appreciation, many local people have pitched in to help with labour and materials to finish off their landscaping and planting so the property looks its best for auction day.
The motivation came from Bayleys' Mary Massara who, with her colleague Terri Newman-Hodge, has agreed to auction the property at no commission to help the family.
Built by G J Gardner Homes, the single-storey house hugs the contours at the highest point of the property, opening to the outdoors off the living areas with 360-degree views of the undulating paddocks.
The Sammuts have added their own quality touches to the design, including the tongue-and-groove double doors to their bedroom and the addition of a bath to their en suite.
But it's the location of their property that has added to the Sammut's love of this area. There's a protected swamp on land between their property and another neighbour.
Pukeko and paradise ducks live there and nest in the surrounding properties. The swamp is well-known among the duck populace as a refuge during the duck-shooting season.
Meanwhile, cows, sheep and fallow deer graze on the Sammut's paddocks.
``From here we can see every corner of our property,'' says John. ``We love this lifestyle because you can relax and be yourself in a way that I don't feel you can be in the city.''
On good days they'll take family walks around the area and meet locals walking their dogs or riding their horses.
One neighbour, Thomas Grace, has organised the completion of their fencing in recent weeks
Says John: ``The sad thing about this is that we won't be here to tell everyone about the people who have given us all this help. We'll be leaving behind so much that has been achieved with the help of friends we have in this area, but we have to do this for our family.''
Vital Statistics
SIZE: Land 4.2ha, house 211sq m.
PRICE INDICATION: CV $840,000. Auction December 9.
INSPECT: Sun 3.30-4.30pm.
ON THE WEB: www.bayleys.co.nz #172257
SCHOOL ZONES: Zoned for Woodhill Primary School. Primary and secondary children travel to the North Shore. School bus service to all Takapuna schools as well as Kristin (Albany), Pinehurst (Albany) and Kingsway (Orewa).
CONTACT: Mary Massara or Terri Newman-Hodge, Bayleys, ph Mary 417 0053 bus, 021 412 622; Terri 417 0017 bus, 021 988 757.
FEATURES: GJ Gardner-designed and built two-year-old single level plaster home plus three-bedroom sleepout on 4.2ha. Four fenced paddocks, two deer-fenced paddocks, two springs supplying water for the animals.
