Citizenship Ceremony celebrations
Published on 13 September 2023
Citizenship ceremonies hosted by Woollahra Council are always events to celebrate. But this month, the citizenship ceremony is even more special as we celebrate Mayor Susan Wynne’s last Citizenship Ceremony as Mayor, as well as National Citizenship Day on 17 September 2023.
Woollahra Council hosts citizenship ceremonies for 40-70 conferees plus their guests every six weeks, and over the last four years as Mayor, Susan has welcomed 1,408 new citizens to the Woollahra LGA.
“We are grateful to be part of such a milestone event in the lives of our new Australian citizens and we hope they love living in Woollahra,” said Mayor Susan Wynne.
New citizens come from all over the world, with most ceremonies welcoming up to 20 different nationalities, across all demographics. Each one have chosen to call Australia and Woollahra home for a myriad of good reasons.
Citizenship ceremonies are always very festive occasions and we thoroughly enjoy inviting our conferees and their guests to the beautiful historical Council Chambers and terrace overlooking the stunning harbour.
We gift new citizens a native seedling and invite them to stay for ‘Aussie’ refreshments of party pies, sausage rolls and lamingtons after their pledge and photos.
During the Covid years we had to pivot and hold ceremonies online. We tried to make them fun and personal, but after technical hiccups and ‘you’re on mute’ fatigue, we are glad to be back to real life events! Many conferees have asked if they can have their ceremony again – in person, with pastries and views!
Migration stories
This year we are inviting new citizens to contribute their migration stories and/or ‘why you love living in Woollahra’ anecdotes and photos to a ‘New Citizen’s Anthology’ digital book. See the developing book here.
Some excerpts:
Fanny from France: “I am now an Australian, proud and grateful, with a smile on my lips, heart and soul.”
Kinshasha from the Democratic Republic of Congo: “I dreamed of 'Summer Bay' and the life I saw the characters living; sunshine, BBQ and beach. Now I live near the Beach and have a daily dose of 'Summer Bay'.”
Dharishinie from Singapore: “We chose to live in Woollahra as we enjoy living by the water and parks, and living in tune with nature.”