Antonio D’Ermilio
| First name | Antonio |
|---|---|
| Last name | D'Ermilio |
| Country of Origin | Italy |
| Date of Birth | 11/7/1936 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1954 |
| Submitted by | Tina Smythe |
Story
Born 11/7/1936 in Vasto, Italy, Antonio was from a family of 10 brothers and 3 sisters. Antonio’s education consisted of 3 years of schooling and at the age of 8 his father sent him to work at a Brick Works as the family was going through hardship and not well off.
At the age of 16 he put himself through night school from 1952-1953 and achieved a certificate in 3 core subjects. His brother, Nicola had already settled in Australia in WA and Antonio was very keen to join his brother and make a better life for himself and so Nicola sponsored Antonio to come to WA.
Antonio travelled by ship which took approximately 4 weeks in sometimes very rough waters. He arrived at the Port of Fremantle on the 28th May, 1954 and resided with his brother Nicola and his wife Michelina in Victoria Park, WA.
Antonio’s first impression of Australia was the vast amount of space as in Italy families were confined to very small places.
Antonio worked in the Forestry Dept as a labourer, while he also attended night school to learn the English language. He left the Forestry Dept after 2 years and went to work for Westralian Plywoods in Victoria Park where he stayed for the next 37 years. He became very knowledgeable on all the different types of veneer grains in the timber.
By the age of 20 Antonio had obtained a drivers licence and bought his first car. He loved dancing and became a Jive teacher at Allen Butcher’s Dance Studio. It was here in 1957 he met Valerie Ward. On 12th November, 1960 Antonio and Valerie married at the Catholic Church in Seventh Avenue, Maylands, WA. Antonio and Valerie built a home at 12 Jordan Street, Cloverdale where they raised their four children. Tina – born 25/09/1962, John – born 06/04/1964, Laurie – born 14/01/1966 and Garry – born 21/2/1967. This was home for 33 yeras where Antonio worked hard and provided well. He loved gardening and always had a fresh supply of vegies to pick. His interests included sport, in particular soccer and he was an excellent pool player.
On 27th July, 1962 he applied for Australian citizenship.
In 1993, Antonio became ill and was diagnosed with Dementia. He was retired on an invalid pension but by 1997 he had had a major breakdown and was confined to a wheelchair. He spent the next 6 years in a nursing home.
On 15th November, 2002, Antonio passed away. He was survived by his wife and 4 children and 6 grand daughters.