23 May 2024
The friendly people, beautiful landscape and SuniTAFE’s reputation were all reasons Silvester Wanjohi, Nessie Kabura and Hannah Njogu moved to Sunraysia from Kenya.
All with a passion for cooking, they have each moved to Mildura to undertake a Certificate IV in Kitchen Management (SIT40521).
Hannah, 26 a recipient of a Destination Australia Scholarship was the first of the three to make the move in September 2023.
“It’s just amazing to live here,” she said.
“I feel really at home here and I like how people treat one another, whether it’s in the supermarket or shops, it’s just a very friendly environment.
“I also like that the population isn’t too big, the environment is clean and love how people treat each other and how I have been treated.”
The decision to move to Mildura wasn’t an easy one for Hannah, who left behind her two-year-old daughter Amelia to live with her sister-in-law while she completes her studies.
“It was a very hard decision, but it’s been the right one,” she said.
“I have always had a passion for cooking and have loved it ever since I was little and I was really interested in developing myself and getting to know more things about cooking, other cultures and their food.
“I love that I am learning something new and different every day and have enjoyed gaining more experience on top of my previous studies.”
Hannah wasn’t the only one who had to leave behind her child, with Nessie, 22 also making the same decision.
It was following the birth of her now three-year-old son Kayden that Nessie found her true passion for cooking.
“It was while in form four that I was first introduced to hospitality, but I realised just how much I enjoyed cooking after the birth of my son Kayden in 2021 as I spent a lot of time cooking for him and cooking a lot of different foods suitable for children,” she said.
Hannah and Nessie applied to move to Mildura and study at SuniTAFE at the same time, but Nessie didn’t arrive until December last year and after hearing how fantastic it was from her cousin Hannah, she couldn’t wait to arrive.
“It’s a beautiful place, I had heard from my cousin Hannah that it was a good place to stay and that she had easily made a lot of friends,” Nessie recalls.
“When I arrived, she introduced me to her friends, and they loved me and I loved them so that was really good.
“I have loved interacting with everyone in class from all the different countries and hearing their languages.”
Following the completion for her Certificate IV in Kitchen Management, Nessie hopes to further her education at SuniTAFE.
“It’s the perfect place to be here, it’s a good place to stay and I hope to be here a long time.”
Silvester, 22 has also found himself at home in Mildura, despite having only heard about it not too long before he applied to move.
“I didn’t know about Mildura until my agent suggested it and said just how good of a place it is and they were right,” he said.
“I like the way people are respectful, they give you space, are loving, they appreciate you and offer guidance when you need it.
“I like that everyone treats you equally and are supportive instead of seeing you as competition.”
Cooking was a huge family tradition for Silvester and something that was a large part of his childhood.
“In my family knowing how to cook is something engineered into us by my mother,” he said.
“I began studying hospitality back home and the decision to move here was because I wanted to further that education.
“Studying here isn’t a lot different to back home but it’s a lot better.”
Hannah and Silvester are already putting their skills to the test, having gained employment with McDonalds. All three hope to continue to study in Mildura and eventually work in a restaurant.
To learn more about studying a Certificate IV in Kitchen Management (SIT40521) click here.