Each year, Bathurst officially welcomes a number of new citizens on Australia Day, and each citizen has their own unique story to tell.
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Among the collective of residents set to officially become an Australian citizen on Saturday is Graham McNab, who has lived in Bathurst for two years.
Originally from Scotland, Mr McNab has found the Bathurst community very welcoming, and is very excited to finally become a citizen.
“It's been a really long journey,” he said.
“Australia is the first place that has felt right for me.”
After living in London for a few years, Mr McNab first journeyed to Australia 13 years ago for the wedding of his brother, Garry.
It took only six weeks to convince Mr McNab that Australia was his calling, and so he decided to settle in Sydney.
“I first came to Australia on a working holiday visa with nothing but a backpack,” he said.
“I managed to get a job in telecommunications, which allowed me to stay in the country on a business sponsorship.”
It was in Sydney where Mr McNab met partner Andrew Cutts, who grew up in Bathurst.
Having now been together for nearly nine years, Mr McNab and Mr Cutts are both heavily involved in Bathurst’s arts scene.
I first came to Australia on a working holiday visa with nothing but a backpack.
- Graham McNab
“We got to that point in our lives where we’d had enough of that busy city lifestyle,” Mr McNab said.
“The community here is amazing, and we’ve enjoyed getting involved with the Carillon Theatrical Society [CTS].”
Mr McNab helped out with CTS’ production of Shrek the Musical Jr. last year.
In addition, he regularly produces his own music, and is a teacher with the Pure Imagination Performing Arts collective.
For Mr McNab, becoming an Australian citizen is an official recognition of his deep connection to the country.
“I love the fact that I can now be involved in determining the future of Australia,” he said.
“After my father passed away, I found out that my parents had actually applied for visas to move to Australia when I was a baby.”
“I find it rather ironic that me and my siblings have all gravitated here.”
Mr McNab’s siblings Garry and Lesley have lived in Australia for 22 and four years respectively.
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Sam Bolt
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
