A special journey taken by Savitha Dasgaonker landed her in Armadale nine years ago, after departing her home country of India.
Mrs Dasgaonker detailed her journey in the Humans of Armadale, a book that brought a platform and voice to a diverse range of members of the Armadale community.
Recalling on the memories of her decision to leave India and landing in Australia, Mrs Dasgaonker said she was overwhelmed but very optimistic.
“While I was getting ready to leave everything and go continents away, it did scare me to the core but I had the strong desire to achieve something, to do something for my family, to give my children a good education and that gave me strength to walk every step with confidence,” she said.
“The evening of August 17 embraced the stories of 20 remarkable individuals in the City of Armadale.
“The stories were so touching and were very emotional. We were overwhelmed to share our lives.
“It was so good as this day also happened to be our 9th Anniversary, the day we first put our foot in Perth, Australia.”
When Mrs Dasgaonker arrived in Australia, she was shown great kindness from the community.
“I got a job in Armadale and we had to find a house close by as I don’t drive and could afford only one car at that time for my husband who found a job 50kms from Armadale,” she said.
“The rental agencies would not give us a chance as they could not do a credit check with only 15 days of presence but thanks to my boss and the administration who took the trouble of speaking to the rental agency.
“They gave them the assurance that they are extremely happy with me at work and requested them to give us the property at least for an initial 6 months and then can be reviewed.
“That little gesture of humanity and we stayed in that house for 7 years.”
When leaving India, Mrs Dasgaonker left her two children with her family so she and her husband could make the move and settle.
“I had to find the inner strength to leave my two babies of 2 years and 1 year in the good care of my family,” she said.
“I feel proud to be part of a community who has given numerous families like ours to be one among them and we feel we are at home.
“Kudos and three cheers to whoever thought of bringing out Humans of Armadale, for providing a platform for so many of us to share our story and gratitude to the community of Armadale for hearing us out.”
