|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Dr Nonja Peters My profile of Dr Nonja Peters is in two parts. The first part, a profile on her professional life that is very inspiring. It was prepared as a nomination for a community award and succinctly puts Nonja’s achievements and current activities. The second part, on her personal life when juxtaposed to her professional profile, is heart rendering and truly is, in every meaning of the word, “awesome”.Dr Nonja Peters was appointed Director of the Migration, Ethnicity, Refugees and Citizenship (MERC) Research Unit, based within the Division of Humanities, Curtin University of Technology in 2001. Her work provides a focus on issues relating to all aspects of forced and voluntary migration and continues her past work in this area. Nonja’s PhD was on immigrant enterprise in WA (completed in 1999 at the University of Western Australia) and has gained her international recognition. She also initiated heritage studies at Western Australian sites relevant to the migrant presence and is curator of a number of permanent and travelling photographic and archival exhibitions on postwar migration to WA, including the permanent displays at the Western Australian Museum and the Northam Visitor Centre. Nonja has also published widely on issues relating to migration and her book Milk and Honey but no Gold: Postwar Migration to Western Australia from 1945-1964, was short-listed for the WA Premier’s 2001 Literary Awards, the Queensland Premier’s 2002 Literary Award for History and the NSW State Records John and Patricia Ward History Prize. She has an entry in the Australian People Vol 1. In addition, she has completed consultancies relating to migrant health, heritage and resettlement for Local, State and Federal Government bodies. Nonja was an organising committee member of the Mediating Human Rights and Democracy: Indonesia, Australia and the Netherlands Human Rights Conference held at Curtin University of Technology in 2002. Additionally, she has given conference papers internationally, nationally and locally. In the Western Australian community she is a regular speaker to a wide range of organisations: ethnic communities, government organisations and private enterprise. In addition Nonja is a member of a number of community organisations including a founding member and Secretary of the Dutch Australian Community Services (DACS) WA Inc (known as Dutch Aged Care). She is also member of the: Ethnic Communities Council Women’s sub committee, Golden Pipeline Interpretation Committee and LISWA Migrant Archives advisory committees; the National Archives of Australia (WA); is Vice President of the Northam Army Camp Heritage Association; and Chairperson for the Associated Netherlands Societies of WA Culture and Heritage working group. Nonja’s philosophy of building a multicultural community is based on her belief that when people meet in harmony they learn about different cultures and then celebrate one another’s differences. These are all laudable achievements but especially so when you consider Nonja’s background. Nonja was conceived during the last year of the war. It was a fraught pregnancy since most of it was spent in a factory in Strasbourg, Alsace Lorraine, under gun where her parents were forcibly sent off to work in a factory making bullets for the German war machine. Her parents found a way to escape on a train to Holland. The train was bombed as they traveled through Cologne which was razed at that time. After Nonja’s birth, her father went into hiding and her mother tried to deal with the V2 which constantly flew over and sometimes dropped on unsuspecting Tilburgers. Nonja was left with her grandmother. Her parents continued life in the same city and came to visit but not take her home. They had another child, a son, some four years later. Her father left for Australia in December 1948. Nonja’s mother picked Nonja up from her grandmother’s in July 1949 to come to Australia. As a very young child this must have been bewildering. Firstly, she is separated from the person who has cared for her and taken away by people who she knows are her parents, but who she has no or little memory of as parents. Then she is taken to a new country that has a different language, different seasons, different food and so forth with a mother who was homesick and unused to having this child. Nonja was left to her own devices at 6, luckily their neighbours in Subiaco, an Irish family, were prepared to keep a watchful an eye on her. Her life must have been turned on end. A year later she was waitressing in the family’s fish and chip shop in Toodyay – she could speak English best so was the front person. As an early teenager Nonja is made to leave school and sent back to Holland to her relatives, now also a distant memory to her. Her native language had also receded. The reason for being sent back to Holland was to do a podiatry course. When she again returns to Australia she learns that the podiatry course she undertook is not recognised here. Nonja gets a “good job” with the Government as a ledger machinist. Anyone who remembers these ghastly machines will find “good job” and ledger machines in the same sentence incredulous! After marriage and two children, Nonja then returns to study as a mature age student, commencing with doing her TEE and finishing by completing her PhD. All part-time while she cares for her family. And I haven’t mentioned Nonja’s experience with Anorexia Nervosa. Then comes the saddest and possibly bitterest blow. Just as she is ready to embark on an academic career, she learns that her husband, Robert, has Multiple Sclerosis. This debilitating disease strikes at them both. For Robert has to deal with the affliction and all that goes with it, while at the same time seeing Nonja ready to enjoy success but he is not able to fully engage in her accomplishments. Nonja has to balance her work that she has put so much energy into with the care of her beloved Robert. Nonja and I have shared our experiences as mature age students, our love of scholarly work, the barriers to be faced, including our own lack of confidence sometimes that stems from our late arrival to academia and in a heavily male populated profession. She has also shared with me the experiences of living with a MS sufferer, the sleepless nights, the frustrations of traveling with a wheelchair bound person and the anxiety she feels when she needs to have respite. In spite of all this she continues with her very important work. My neighbours who are Italian migrants, speak of Nonja glowingly, how much they appreciated her work on the Northam camp and how they love her book Milk and Honey. Put the whole package together and you see why others and I ask Nonja “when are you going to write your biography?” Dr Nonja Peters is an inspirational person, most certainly, awesome most definitely. By Debbie Hindley, (Debbie works at the Division of Humanities, Curtin University of Technology and is a PhD student at Murdoch University) |
Back to profile Menu
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|