Afaf Mohamed works tirelessly in the Brimbank Community and has been recognised for her efforts Picture: SHARON WALKER
BY NATALIE GALLENTI
WHEN Afaf Mohamed arrived in Australia in 2002, she never imagined she would one day receive an award for her outstanding work within the Brimbank community.
That’s why when her name was announced at last week’s Brimbank Australia Day Awards for 2012, Ms Mohamed couldn’t help but shed a few tears.
The diligent community worker received the Community Wellbeing Award at last Wednesday night’s award ceremony and said it was a very proud moment.
“I was really surprised,” she recalled.
“My heart was pumping fast and I was crying.”
Born in Sudan, Ms Mohamed’s background in community development dates back to 1991 and since settling in Australia she has successfully pursued further education to help her improve her skills in assisting the community.
Her achievements include attaining various diplomas, working as a volunteer with AMES and her current work with the Edmund Rice Community and Refugee Services. She also works as a multicultural aid at Caroline Chisholm College in Braybrook and Catholic Regional College in St Albans.
And if that wasn’t enough, the selfless volunteer and single mother of six, also hosts a lunch every fortnight with young Sudanese migrants who have left home and require support.
“Teenagers run away from their families because they don’t want to listen to them and live the life they want, so I talk to the parents to make them understand,” Ms Mohamed said.
Ms Mohamed said she realises the importance of educating and empowering members of the Sudanese community, in particular woman and children, in a bid to lead the way into integrating and assimilating Sudanese culture into Western culture.
“A lot of people come here uneducated, from villages, and they are not familiar with city life,” she said.
She said people often become embroiled in anti-social behaviour because of the extreme culture shock they experience once they arrive and she hoped to one day work with child protection agencies and other law enforcement agencies to raise awareness of the long-term affects of dropping out of school, drug and alcohol abuse and peer pressure.
