Cultures from across the world came together in Kalgoorlie on Thursday 21 March for a Harmony Day Shared Lunch.

Frontier Services Community Migrant Service in Kalgoorlie hosted the celebration with the 2013 Harmony Day theme “Many Stories – One Australia”. More than 30 people attended with 15 different countries represented.

During the lunch, students studying English through the Goldfields Institute of Technology were invited to share their own stories as they chatted with friends and clients of the Community Migrant Service.

Guests brought food to share from their own culture and were encouraged to wear
national dress or an article from their home country.

Harmony Day, managed by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, is a day for celebrating Australia’s cultural diversity.

Community Migrant Worker Elizabeth Coghill said the Shared Lunch was a way of bringing people from different cultures together.

“Kalgoorlie has an extremely diverse array of cultures from all over
the world,” said Ms Coghill. “This was an opportunity for people to share something of their culture and to feel pride in sharing that culture in a comfortable environment.”

“Food is important in all cultures and so sharing a meal is a wonderful way of introducing different cultural groups. There are immediately questions asked about the food and the different beliefs or traditions around food and it creates a very informal exchange of information in a purposeful way.”

One of the roles of the Community Migrant Service is to assist migrants with accessing English language classes. It also provides advice and support on a range of topics including employment, community and health services, legal rights and responsibilities and other settlement matters.

The service is funded by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship through its Settlement Grants Program and is available to migrants who meet certain criteria.