Manor Lakes man Mohammed Isah is the chair of Welfare, Innovation and Advocacy of the Edo Club of Australia Inc. He chats with Alesha Capone.
How long have you lived in Wyndham and what do you like about it?
I have lived in Wyndham since 2006, in Truganina, and moved to Manor Lakes in 2014. I love that I am close to public transport, the beautiful scenery, walking trail and bike paths, numerous parks and lakes. I enjoy going for walks with my family and seeing Australian native wildlife, including kangaroos and birds.
Can you tell me a bit about the Edo Club of Australia Inc?
Edo Club of Australia Inc was established in 2007 as the Australia peak Edo State of Nigeria, organisations and individual grouping of Edo migrants. The club represents the needs and aspirations of the Edo community in Australia. Its constituency comprises of all Edo heritage and special interest associations. Edo Club aims to enrich and enhance the wellbeing of Edo-Australians within the multicultural context of the Australian and Nigerian community. It aims to achieve this through the fullest participation and involvement of all people of Edo State of Nigeria background and establish relations with relevant organisations in the wider Australian community.
What do you enjoy about being part of the club?
The community spirit – as I migrated to Australia at age 12, I have little connection to my birth country and to be able to be involved in a group with other Edo indigenes of all ages provides me with connection and opportunity to learn about my heritage, listening to traditional stories told by elders and trying to learn my native tongue. The support and assistance that the club provides to students and migrants to resettle and adapt to their new environment successfully. The COVID-19 lockdown has seen members experience feelings of isolation which has resulted to the establishment of several programs for members to stay connected, support each other through these challenging times, share stories and discuss the impact of COVID. We have held several sessions with specialist guests and most recently an international comedian joining via Zoom, which brought much laughter to all participants.
Are you involved in any other organisations?
I am involved in several other programs across the west including being a consumer advisor for the Werribee Mercy Hospital and founder and lead for the Wyn Mentoring Program, and I am actively involved in raising funds for other groups and communities, targeted at impact-driven local and global projects.
Would you like to add anything else?
I would like to highlight how fortunate we are in Wyndham to be a vibrant and diverse community with a high percentage of our population born overseas and a wide variety of languages spoken by residents. Our collective strengths place us in a unique position to work with and alongside one another in building a resilience community post-COVID.
