Family happy with new life in Australia

FOR LOVE OF OZ: A thirst for adventure and the desire to create new opportunities for employment and her family brought Maria “Maggie” Magdalena Jacobs to Geraldton almost nine years ago.

Born in South Africa in 1980 and raised in an Afrikaans-speaking household, Mrs Jacobs and husband Bryan have since become Australian citizens and settled in Geraldton with their children Ann, 11, and Daniel, 13.

“We feel blessed to be able to be here,” Mrs Jacobs said.

“We know there are lots of people who want to be here but don’t have the means to get here.

“We are thankful to be in the position we are in, starting our own business and having opportunities for our kids and the school they go to.” Mrs Jacobs said.

The Jacobs decided to leave South Africa after impulsively attending a seminar about migrating to Australia.

Mrs Jacobs said, unlike many other South Africans who left to escape the high crime rate, she and her husband only wanted to improve their work prospects and provide a good life for their children.

She said they were so accustomed to crime and fear in South Africa it was only after they started to settle into life in Geraldton they appreciated the freedom of being able to relax in a safe place.

“Back in South Africa Bryan’s sister’s husband got shot (during a break-in) and my brother in Johannesburg got hijacked at gunpoint, four times in three months,” she said.

“That’s not something you hear of here.

“I’ve never been for a walk on my own in South Africa, or in Australia.

“I’m not afraid, but I’m wary.

“I still get out of bed at night to double check the front door is locked.

“I still have that in me and I don’t think its ever going to go away.”

She said it had been tough starting their rubber lining and conveyor business in Geraldton in 2012 because they were accustomed to having access to cheap labour in South Africa.

Mr Jacobs did alone the same work he had once done with four labourers in his father’s South African business.

Mrs Jacobs, who once ran the family home with the help of a gardener and a domestic worker, donned work boots and obtained a forklift ticket so she could work with her husband.

“In WA we were forced to do the work ourselves,” she said.

“You would never see a wife doing what I do in South Africa, pulling conveyors or getting a forklift ticket to try to help with the work.

“I actually see it as a challenge.”

The hard work paid off, and although many businesses are going through a quiet period, Geraldton Rubber and Conveyor has been able to employ a trainee.

“We are very blessed,” Mrs Jacobs said.

“We are in maintenance.

“We understand the whole town, with the downturn it’s a struggle, but things still need to be maintained even though no new projects are happening.”

She said when she first arrived, she had a steep learning curve adjusting to life in Australia.

Apart from having to clean her own home, she also cleaned other peoples’ homes, which some in South Africa might have considered beneath her socially.

She said this made her less materialistic and more grateful for what she had and could do.

Her father Daan Swart is on a three-month visit to Geraldton.

Mr Swart said he worried about his son and daughter still living in South Africa, but held no fears for his daughter and her family in Australia because it was a much safer place to live.

He said he and his wife would move to Australia in a heartbeat if they could.

“Better here? It feels like it’s my second home,” he said.

“The temperature ... and the people in town ... I can greet anyone.

“You get the picture in South Africa, Australians are very arrogant but they are not like that here.”

Living far from the support of her extended family has been difficult at times, particularly during times of heartache, such as after the deaths of two of Mrs Jacob’s brothers in the past few years.

However, she said there was a large South African community in Geraldton that was very supportive while being actively involved in the broader community.

“We have a connection because of our history,” she said.

“It feels easy and natural, like family.

“We speak English to each other in the presence of English speakers because it would be rude if they couldn’t understand what we are saying.

“A lot of South Africans just see the positives and are just happy and glad to be here.

“I’ve never looked back.

“I’ve always been very positive about Australia.”

For love of Oz is an occasional series about people from overseas who have made their home in Geraldton.