What is your connection with Melton?
I live in Melton West with my family. I work with the people in the Melton community through church ministry.
How long have you lived in the area?
Four years.
Tell me about yourself and your family.
My country was in war. I was a refugee in Zimbabwe in a refugee camp for five years. I travelled to Australia with my family in 2013 and was placed in Braybrook. I have now made my home in Melton. I came to Australia with just one daughter who was born in Zimbabwe – she is 10 years old and I have adopted three more children since then, all Australian-born children of African descent.
Why did you choose to start a church in Melton?
In the area of Melton, there are a lot of people from different countries of Africa living here. They didn’t have a lot of places to meet … so I established a church in my garage where a lot of people from different countries and different cultures can meet. They are so happy to have somewhere where they can fellowship.
Melton is growing with more families coming to the area. We want to raise our kids in a good way. Many of our African kids could get into trouble, whether they’re new to Australia or have lived here for some time … we want to teach them good ways. That’s why I opened this ministry. We have about 100 members now.
What initiatives do you run for the community?
We have a music band and a cultural drumming group. We also have a big choir for the adults with a small choir for the kids. We have a football (soccer) team for our youth particularly the young boys.
Young people in the African community have been getting some negative attention lately. What are your thoughts?
We set up the football team to try and give these young boys good direction. We welcome every community from Melton.
What are you passionate about?
My idea when I came to Melton was to bring people together.
What do you love about Melton?
I love Melton … everybody is friendly.
