Nara De Santis (m.Cannito)
| Town/City | Lysterfield Victoria |
|---|---|
| First name | Nara |
| Last name | De Santis (m.Cannito) |
| Country of Origin | Italy - Cosenza |
| Date of Birth | 1/7/1944 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1959 |
| Submitted by | nancy cosentino |
Story
On Christmas Eve, 1958, my Mum Nara De Santis embarked from Naples to Australia with Nonna Ermelinda and Mum’s three brothers and three sisters. They departed on the ship ‘The Flaminia’. Leaving behind her Grandparents and family and friends was very hard for Mum, but it was to come to Australia for a chance of a better life. There were many tears on the ship and many stories told. One my Mum tells of is of the Corelli family and a young man named Mimmo whose Mum was not well as she had just had an operation before leaving. They were sleeping on the bottom level and the noise from the ship made it hard to sleep and relax, especially as she was not well. Mimmo asked Nonna if his Mum could sleep with them as she might be able to feel better as they were on the level above and Nonna agreed. Before passing Perth, Mrs Corelli died, but Mimmo was grateful for what they had done. They finally arrived at Port Melbourne on the 23rd January, 1959 and Nonno Aurelio was waiting there with open arms as he had arrived here alone in 1956 to see what Australia was like before sending over for his family. This was not an easy times for migrants and they all worked very hard. Mum found work after about a month, but it was far away having to catch buses and trains and not speaking much English. She was always happy though and never complained. Migrants did what they had to do to survive.
She met Dad, Luca Cannito, also a migrant at a friend’s house on Australia Day, 1965. They had a few outings and on the 18th December of that year, they married at St. Mary’s Church in Dandenong. They had three children, Frank was born on the 22nd September, 1966 and I was born on the 20th August, 1969. My sister Linda followed on the 20th January, 1973. Mum and Dad were very proud on the 19th June, 1979 when they became Australian Citizens.
Thank you Mum for giving us a start in life and for being the best Mum in the world. Thank you for all your special stories of when you were younger, stories that I can now pass on to Sam and Luke. Love always, Nancy.x