Celebrating diversity

To coincide with Harmony Day, we recently shared the stories of 2014 LBWR alumni Michelle Dunn and Nathan Curnow - two Ballarat people making a stand for inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. Today, we continue to celebrate the theme of diversity with fellow 2014 graduates Aldona Kmiec and Deb Milera. 

Aldona Kmiec (LBWR 2014)

“For me, hope comes from within and from without. It comes from my experiences in life, as well as from my family and mentors. Hope is a great gift you can give to somebody and a wonderful thing to receive.

My desire for doing something new in the community stems from my culture, my family history and their involvement in local affairs back in Poland. I’m very inspired by Polish history and what you can achieve, in the worst of circumstances, if you have a good leader.

I’ve always been rather rebellious, energetic and hungry to see more. I loved trying new things, travelling to different places. Over the years, I've come to understand that without the experience of leaving your comfort zone (‘safe place’), you won’t truly know where the power for change comes from.

I hope that people will grow to become happy, experience new things in life and learn to understand they have a choice, either to sit still or to create their own future and shape it however they like. I believe it is possible in any age and circumstance, but one has to be ready, have the willingness and the courage.

Migration is a wonderful experience that gives you a taste for many things and what you tend to do is to pick the best ones and try to instill them in the place you live.

When I moved to Ballarat, I thought I could try to create something for myself that would have an impact on the community by doing something I'd never done before and pushing myself to overcome my fears.

My decisions to continue to create art and to open the Big Space Studio on Sturt Street were major challenges for me. I wanted to create a co-working space where people could collaborate on arts and community projects. I wanted to add a vibe to the town that would help to create a community around it. I also wanted to show others that it is possible and to bring something new to Sturt Street.

Being a multicultural ambassador has encouraged me to learn more about other cultures and to advocate on their behalf in public. The people I’ve met through the program have become my friends and, through this connection and our work in the community, I have come to understand what makes them pack their belongings and move to a foreign country.”

Deb Milera (LBWR 2014)

“I’m a proud Narrungga woman and my people come from the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia. I’m a single mother of five beautiful children. Both my parents were born in the 1950s and removed from their mothers at a young age, like many Aboriginal children of the Stolen Generation.

I was born in the 1970s and, around this time, my people were brought off the Australia’s Flora & Fauna Act and put into the Human Rights Act. I was born into social justice.

Me, my parents, my children and all of my ancestors are the reasons I often put myself into challenging positions and basically place myself outside of my comfort zone. I believe I have a responsibility to continue my ancestors’ struggles/fights for equality and basic human rights since colonialism roughly 200 years ago.

Being given the opportunity to be a part of LBWR’s 2014 program was a challenging and rewarding time for me, not only because of the many programs and people we met but, more importantly, being a part of a syndicate of five people from many walks of life was a very powerful learning exercise for me. This was because I grew in trust that I could openly unpack lots of issues that affect the community we all live in.

I have learned that leaders come from all walks of life and that not always the loudest person has the most important message.

This program further confirmed for me that, to be a leader, you need to be able to empower people to stand up and advocate or fight for things you believe in and to lead people to what they need, not necessarily what they want.

The most important thing I learnt was it's okay to be me, no matter where I am.

I will continue to empower my people to stand up for their basic human rights and my hope for the future is that my five children will be able to live in a world free of racism and hatred, and that they are offered full equality and they have happy, healthy, safe and successful lifestyles."

Nikki Foy (LBWR 2015)

LBWR would like to congratulate Nikki Foy (LBWR 2015) on her appointment as a multicultural ambassador with the City of Ballarat.

The ambassador program aims to enhance community awareness and social acceptance in Ballarat; foster leadership within multicultural and Indigenous communities; and highlight the positive contributions migrants and Indigenous Australians make to Ballarat.