Earlier this year, our valued Gympie Support Worker, Freda Paison, became an Australian Citizen. Back in 2018, Freda and her partner moved Down Under from Papua New Guinea. They got married when they arrived, the occasion becoming even more memorable with torrential rain making them move the celebrations indoors.
Freda had a tough time adjusting to life here, going back and forth between Australia and PNG for work. When COVID hit, she couldn’t travel anymore and had to accept Australia as her new home. Finding a job during the pandemic was tough, but Freda found her calling as a support worker at Suncare.
She decided to become an Australian citizen, and after lots of studying, she aced the citizenship test. ‘I was so worried about not passing the citizenship test but I came out with a 100% score for it so I knew it was meant to be an Australian,’ say’s Freda.
Despite the rain (again!) on her citizenship day, Freda feels incredibly lucky and proud to call Australia home after her long journey from Papua New Guinea.
