Giuseppe Mancuso
| Town/City | Copacabana NSW |
|---|---|
| First name | Giuseppe |
| Last name | Mancuso |
| Country of Origin | Italy |
| Date of Birth | 20/09/25 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1956 |
| Submitted by | Tim Mancuso |
Story
GIUSEPPE MANCUSO
Giuseppe Mancuso was born on 20th September 1925 in Rocca Di Caprileone, a small town in the province of Messina, Sicily.
He was the second son of Natale Mancuso and Carmela Paparone.
He married his wife, Carolina Vitanza in October 1947 and settled down in his local village to start a family. In 1948, their first son Tindaro was born, followed by the arrival of their daughter, Carmelina in 1954.
Opportunities in post war Italy were limited and the difficult economic times, especially in Sicily, made it very difficult to provide for the future he wanted for his family.
Giuseppe was a strong defender of fellow workers rights and many referred to him as ‘L\’avvocato dei poveri’ (the advocate for the poor). This combined with the difficult economic times, limited the future prospects in his homeland and resulted in his decision to migrate to Australia.
On the 18th April 1956, Giuseppe left Messina on the ‘Paolo Toscanelli’ a converted troop carrier journeying to Fremantle, Western Australia. He left Messina with a large debt that was required to pay for his voyage, leaving behind his wife and children, Tindaro then 7 and Carmelina not yet 2 years old
It was a brave and difficult decision to leave his family behind at the age 30 and travel to a strange place so far away.
Giuseppe arrived in Fremantle with high hopes, and immediately set out looking for work, only to be repeatedly told ‘sorry there is no job for you here because you do not speak English’.
After two months of not being able to find work in WA he contacted his brother in law, who was working in the sugar cane fields in QLD. He was told there was plenty of work there, but that it was extremely heavy and difficult work, working very long hours under hot and humid conditions.
Desperate to earn some money to support the family he left behind and the wish to repay his debts, he borrowed some more money from a friend and flew to North Queensland to join his brother in law to cut sugar cane in Innisfail and Tulley.
At the end of the sugar cane season, work opportunities in QLD were also limited, so he left for Sydney to seek employment.
Soon after arriving in Sydney he found work in a factory, however factory wages were much lower than what he earned cutting sugar cane. He continued to seek additional employment, working on weekends to supplement his income.
Giuseppe returned to the sugar cane fields for the next 2 years at the commencement of the sugar cane season to earn as much money as possible to bring his family to Australia.
It was a long and lonely time spent working 70 plus hours a week away from his family and friends. By1958, he had earned enough to repay his debts and to pay for his family\’s voyage to Australia. On the 28th January 1958, his wife and children arrived at Pyrmont in Sydney on the ‘Neptunia’, where he was at long last reunited with his family.
Giuseppe and Carolina both continued to work hard, often 7 days a week in order to provide the highest quality of life for his family. Having lived a hard life from a very young age (left school at 11 to seek work) he understood the value of an education and was very passionate in his desire to provide the best opportunities for his children and worked even harder to put his children through university.
Giuseppe and Carolina now live a comfortable life in retirement, spending their days tending to their large vegetable garden (and their children and grandchildren\’s gardens!) Their evenings are spent dancing two nights a week, often until well past midnight!
They are surrounded by their loving family- son Tindaro (Tim) and daughter in law Rosalia, their children Daniella married to Nicholas Turner and great granddaughter Isabella, Clarissa married to Mario Amoroso and great granddaughter Lalita, and Joseph (named after his grandfather) married to Mirjana and daughter Carmelina (Lena) and son-in-law Norman Arena, and their children Nicholas and Carolyn (named after her grandmother).
Giuseppe and Carolina\’s family are immensely proud of their Italian heritage and grateful for all the sacrifices made to ensure a better life for them in this great country – Australia.