After 49 years, it’s official
WHEN Jack Anderson moved to Australia, aged 32, he’d been a policeman in a very troubled Ireland and, after losing too many colleagues, he headed to the sunny peaceful shores of this country and returned to his trade as a mechanic.
He became a permanent resident with the right to vote but life got in the way of ever becoming a fully-fledged Australian citizen and, as it happened, the decades kept rolling past.
Though he says it’s been a very desirable thing to become a citizen, it ended up being practical reasons that finally got him over the line.
“We’re planning to go to Ireland next year and I have to get a passport,” he told
So it was at last – after 49 years – that Mr Anderson took the pledge.
“I am now, after 49 years as a permanent resident, a fair dinkum Aussie. This is a special time for me and I am proud to be a citizen of this beautiful and rich country,” he said.
“I will endeavour to live up to the privilege of citizenship and will try to be a good citizen. I have an Australian wife, son, two grandchildren and one great-granddaughter,” he said.
That’s he’s been a good citizen is actually well documented following a nomination and win in 2016 as Dubbo Senior Citizen of the Year.
“My son did a nomination, that should get me into heaven,” he said with a strong Irish lilt. “He’d noted all the things that I’ve done. I’m a driving instructor for Uniting, I’m a blood donor, and I volunteer for the SES, all sorts of interesting stuff. It was a humbling experience though, considering how many people are out there doing more than me.”
Jack has lived in Dubbo since 1980 with his lovely bride, Julie.