Moving to a new country and learning a new language is not for the faint-hearted. But Trinelyn Cheatley has embraced the life change with gusto, volunteering for her local community and forging fresh bonds in her new home in the charming town of Jindera, nestled in the Greater Hume Shire.
Family comes first for Philippines-born Trinelyn Cheatley. As a proud mother and wife, Trinelyn knows she is in the right place to raise her family, saying, ‘We love Jindera, as it is quiet and peaceful, and bad things don’t often happen here.’
Trinelyn also appreciates that there are many family-friendly options in the local area and across the Greater Hume Shire. ‘There are also a lot of activities in this suburb, like the Jindera Community Garage Sale, Morgan Country Car Club Swap Meet and Show & Shine. I like that we have a new playground and that they’re also developing the old playground at Pioneer Park.’
‘It’s good to have a leisure centre like the Jindera Swimming Pool. We also enjoy visiting our local cafe, The Fox & Brew. I should say that Jindera has everything we need like the IGA, fish and chips, the bakery and the butcher.’
Trinelyn loves her new home so much that she has officially become an Australian Citizen. But, of course, the move didn’t come without its challenges.
Overcoming obstacles
It was a big lifestyle change moving from the Philippines to a small regional town in Australia, but Trinelyn has fully embraced the country ethos.
She migrated to Australia in 2018, and the couple’s first stop was Jindera as this was her husband and his family’s hometown. ‘After that, we rented in East Albury for a year,’ she says. But the move didn’t stick! ‘We came back to Jindera in 2020 as we found it peaceful here.’
Once firmly ensconced in her chosen hometown, Trinelyn dedicated herself to volunteering in the local community – a decision she says helped her to make connections and develop her self-confidence. She spent one day a week working with the team at the Jindera Rural Care Link Op Shop.
‘I enjoyed it so much when I was volunteering, especially when the customers would ask me to help carry the things they bought to put in their car or even to their home (if they were living close to the op shop),’ she says.
‘I love dealing with other people. Volunteering helped to boost my confidence. I got to know more about the people in the community.’ She says the team were incredibly welcoming and she still visits them whenever she has the chance.
One of her biggest obstacles was improving her English language skills. ‘The challenges for me being new in this country were things like needing to learn to drive and communicating with other people as I had an American accent and people often struggled to understand,’ she says.
But Trinelyn wasn’t afraid of a bit of hard work. ‘I went to TAFE and studied English 3 to improve my understanding and communication skills. My preconceived [idea] was that all [forms of] English are the same, but I found out that a lot of things are named differently. Like “toilet” here – in our country we call it “CR (Comfort room)” and many more.’
Counting her blessings
Today, Trinelyn works as a team member/supervisor at Woolworths Lavington. ‘I am impressed by how quickly promotions are given here, if you deserve [it],’ she says. And deserve it she did as she was quickly given the role of supervisor.
Trinelyn says she and her husband are glad to be raising their daughter in Jindera. ‘I have a daughter with a limb difference,’ she explains. ‘Being in Australia, and attending the Saint Mary MacKillop School, made me confident that she won’t be bullied.’
‘My daughter is living her life like everyone else. She also got help from NDIS when she was young.’ She continues, ‘Australia is the best place to live. I appreciate living here, having Medicare, nice roads, good work, many trees, lovely people and so on. We love Jindera.’
The joys of Jindera
Of course, there are a lot of other reasons to love Jindera! Jindera is one of several quaint towns located in the Greater Hume Shire. It boasts the facilities and services families need, with the quiet and peaceful nature they crave.
Jindera is proving particularly popular with young families, thanks to quality schools, sporting facilities and plenty of opportunities to get active in nature.
Multiple residential and industrial developments are underway in the area, to keep up with the increased demand. Affordability is a great drawcard to the Greater Hume, along with larger residential blocks, and plenty of job opportunities across a variety of industries.
A country change to the Greater Hume is an invitation to create a better lifestyle for you and your family. The fresh air and open spaces, busy events calendar and many opportunities to get involved in the local community will be too tempting to turn down.
This community-minded aspect also ensures that newcomers to the area are well supported. Get to know Jindera better in this video or head along to one of the Greater Hume Shire’s upcoming events and take a look for yourself.
Content supplied courtesy of Country Change
