Community
28 February, 2025
Labour of love becomes reality
AN old church building in Derrinallum has been given a new lease of life, with a resident having finished major works to transform the building into a unique home for herself and her son.
Pippa McMinn has spent the past three years converting the St Joseph’s church building, which was sold in 2022, while maintaining the original structure of the building.
Ms McMinn said she loved living in the converted church and is happy with the results of her labour.
“I love the ceiling, and I love any building that’s different,” she said.
“I just looked at it and thought this could be an amazing house.
“Basically, I tried to leave the structure alone and just fill in the interior on the end to make the bedrooms.
“The only thing I did was remove a wall in the kitchen to make the kitchen bigger.”
Parts of the original church have been kept during the transition, including the foundation stone from the church’s construction on December 17, 1922, the crosses on the roof and the structure of the ceiling inside.
Ms McMinn said she has loved the ambiance of the building, especially with the changes made to the windows to reduce traffic noise.
“Being in this church is like being in a world of your own,” she said.
“Most of the windows are double-glazed, and I’ve got electric blinds that are insulated that all come down.
“It’s energy efficient because of the insulation that I’ve done, the electric blinds, the solar panels and battery I’ve got – my bills are a maximum of $20 and a minimum of zero per month.
“I have planted fruit trees, a veggie garden, passionfruit, orange trees, lemon trees – if we hit tough times hopefully we’ll be okay.
“I want to be as self-sufficient as possible with this property. I put all my money into it to make it as efficient as possible.”
The home also includes a worm farm for composting green waste, large water tanks to collect rainwater, and a wood heater to heat the home during winter.
Recent weeks have seen Ms McMinn adding finishing touches to the interior of the home, including changing furniture around and decorating.
Having moved from Geelong to live in Derrinallum, Ms McMinn said her favourite part of the town was they way other residents have embraced her as part of the community.
“I was out the front just working away, and I had that many people introduce themselves and welcome me – I can’t say enough about the town,” she said.
“It has been amazing.
“Yes, there’s a couple who like to stir the pot, but overall, they’re absolutely beautiful people.
“You don’t get lonely because you can walk down to the post office and everyone will have a chat.
“It’s like a huge family - until you live here, you won’t understand how nice it is as a community.”
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