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MName: Maria Cebulski
Place of Origin: Lodz, Poland
Date of Departure: 24th February 1950
Date of Arrival: 24th March 1950
Method of Transportation: Boat
Background
Maria Cebulski was working in Lodz, Poland, at the time of German control. She was told she must go to Germany to work - however, a woman told her she must run or they will send her to a concentration camp. She escaped to Hamburg and got a job in a factory. The factory was bombed and Maria went back to Poland where she changed her name out of fear. She is told to go to court and spends three months in prison camp - she says this is worse than concentration camp. After working once again in Hamburg and enduring bombing every day, Maria is sent to a Displaced Persons camp for five years (1945-1950) with not only Polish but Ukrainian and Latvian's too. She met her husband at the camp and her two eldest children were born there. From here, they moved to Australia.
Reason
Maria and her family moved to Australia in 1950, after enduring years of hardship in their home country of Poland. They had spent five years in a Displaced Persons camp before making the decision to move to Australia. She says they had three choices; stay in Germany, move back to Poland or go somewhere like America or Australia. "We chose to go to Australia because Poland after war [was] very poor and Communist country – we don’t want to go there, many people say it was very bad. Stay in Germany? We don’t want to stay. Try new life in Australia.", says Maria in an interview.
Impressions
The family arrived in Australia on the 24th of March, 1950. Maria states how beautiful she thought the Harbour Bridge was. From there they were taken by bus to Bathurst - she was very disappointed with the accommodation here.
Policy/Scheme
Maria came to Australia under the Displaced Persons initiative which ran from 1947-1953. The Australian Government assisted around 170,000 Displaced Persons in escaping their war-torn country for a new life in Australia.
Housing
The family is taken to migrant accommodation in Bathurst upon arrival. They put eight families in one room - men, children and women together. The men stay for two weeks before going to Sydney to work. The women and children remain in Bathurst for five months. Then they transfer them to Cowra - they have no choice. Maria only saw her husband once a month. She remained here for two years and four months, and gave birth to another child in this time. They were then transferred to Windsor at Scheyville migrant camp - Maria saw her husband once a week now. She had her next child at Scheyville. For four years, her husband was building a house in Liverpool and they have lived there since the 1st of August, 1956.
Employment
Maria's first job was at the Scheyville camp, helping on a farm nearby (picking potatoes, cauliflowers, oranges and planting). ONce she moved into her first home, she got a job at a restaurant, but only stayed here for two weeks as her boss was underpaying her so she quit. She found another job at a factory in Chatswood and enjoyed this as they were like a big family. However, it was quite far away so she got another job in Malley's in Auburn, which was harder but closer to home.
Challenges
Maria faced many challenges in Australia. She was treated badly at the different migrant accommodations by staff - in particular, at the Scheyville camp whilst giving birth. The nurses did not care that she was in agony, and only called for a doctor when she was almost unconscious. Then they told her the baby was born dead - right before it began crying. Another challenge was being separated from her husband for such long periods of time. Maria was taken advantage of in her workplace and was not payed properly by her boss. She struggled with gaining her independence back once she finally left the camps - she felt lost.
However one of the biggest challenges she faced was her daughter, Barbara, being diagnosed with cancer whilst living in Cowra. Barbara was in hospital six months before they amputated her leg. The cancer had spread to her lungs and she died in her bedroom in Scheyville. She was only 11.
Contributions
Maria contributed to the Australian workforce in the many forms of employment she had. She also contributed to growing Australia's population - this was a major concern at the time as the countries population had diminished significantly after WW2.
Place of Origin: Lodz, Poland
Date of Departure: 24th February 1950
Date of Arrival: 24th March 1950
Method of Transportation: Boat
Background
Maria Cebulski was working in Lodz, Poland, at the time of German control. She was told she must go to Germany to work - however, a woman told her she must run or they will send her to a concentration camp. She escaped to Hamburg and got a job in a factory. The factory was bombed and Maria went back to Poland where she changed her name out of fear. She is told to go to court and spends three months in prison camp - she says this is worse than concentration camp. After working once again in Hamburg and enduring bombing every day, Maria is sent to a Displaced Persons camp for five years (1945-1950) with not only Polish but Ukrainian and Latvian's too. She met her husband at the camp and her two eldest children were born there. From here, they moved to Australia.
Reason
Maria and her family moved to Australia in 1950, after enduring years of hardship in their home country of Poland. They had spent five years in a Displaced Persons camp before making the decision to move to Australia. She says they had three choices; stay in Germany, move back to Poland or go somewhere like America or Australia. "We chose to go to Australia because Poland after war [was] very poor and Communist country – we don’t want to go there, many people say it was very bad. Stay in Germany? We don’t want to stay. Try new life in Australia.", says Maria in an interview.
Impressions
The family arrived in Australia on the 24th of March, 1950. Maria states how beautiful she thought the Harbour Bridge was. From there they were taken by bus to Bathurst - she was very disappointed with the accommodation here.
Policy/Scheme
Maria came to Australia under the Displaced Persons initiative which ran from 1947-1953. The Australian Government assisted around 170,000 Displaced Persons in escaping their war-torn country for a new life in Australia.
Housing
The family is taken to migrant accommodation in Bathurst upon arrival. They put eight families in one room - men, children and women together. The men stay for two weeks before going to Sydney to work. The women and children remain in Bathurst for five months. Then they transfer them to Cowra - they have no choice. Maria only saw her husband once a month. She remained here for two years and four months, and gave birth to another child in this time. They were then transferred to Windsor at Scheyville migrant camp - Maria saw her husband once a week now. She had her next child at Scheyville. For four years, her husband was building a house in Liverpool and they have lived there since the 1st of August, 1956.
Employment
Maria's first job was at the Scheyville camp, helping on a farm nearby (picking potatoes, cauliflowers, oranges and planting). ONce she moved into her first home, she got a job at a restaurant, but only stayed here for two weeks as her boss was underpaying her so she quit. She found another job at a factory in Chatswood and enjoyed this as they were like a big family. However, it was quite far away so she got another job in Malley's in Auburn, which was harder but closer to home.
Challenges
Maria faced many challenges in Australia. She was treated badly at the different migrant accommodations by staff - in particular, at the Scheyville camp whilst giving birth. The nurses did not care that she was in agony, and only called for a doctor when she was almost unconscious. Then they told her the baby was born dead - right before it began crying. Another challenge was being separated from her husband for such long periods of time. Maria was taken advantage of in her workplace and was not payed properly by her boss. She struggled with gaining her independence back once she finally left the camps - she felt lost.
However one of the biggest challenges she faced was her daughter, Barbara, being diagnosed with cancer whilst living in Cowra. Barbara was in hospital six months before they amputated her leg. The cancer had spread to her lungs and she died in her bedroom in Scheyville. She was only 11.
Contributions
Maria contributed to the Australian workforce in the many forms of employment she had. She also contributed to growing Australia's population - this was a major concern at the time as the countries population had diminished significantly after WW2.