On 14 August 2015, an ordinary man with an extraordinary heart received a most remarkable honor: to be recognised as one of the great individuals who made a difference. The award was given by Councillor Peter Maynard, the Wyndham City Mayor himself. Walter Villagonzalo was adjudged Wyndham City’s Citizen of the Year for 2015. Earlier in the night, Walter received the Community Engagement Award for 2015 and The Migrant Hub, a not-for-profit organisation which Walter organised and led was given the Community Group Award.
In 1986, he came to Australia as a skilled migrant. Not many years after, he became the President of the Filipino Community Club of Werribee, was a committee member of the Filipino Community Council of Victoria and got involved in different committees that advocated for a variety of issues concerning multicultural communities in the western suburbs. He realised that many of the migrants – especially Filipinos – came with skills and qualifications not recognised in Australia. This is a great waste of resources but is also making the migrants feeling less appreciated and treated like they are not good enough, making it difficult for them to actively participate in the local community. This greatly affected him, for he believes in the need for all residents to be actively involved in society. “I believe there is a need for Filipinos and other migrants to become more active citizens in their local community,” he told The Philippine Times in an interview.
In view of this problem, Walter established The Migrant Hub in 2009, an initiative to help newly-arrived migrants integrate themselves better into the Australian society and encouraging them to be entrepreneurs. Walter, who serves as the Vice President of the Australian Council for Multicultural Entrepreneurs said, “Entrepreneurship is a solution to lack of jobs or lack of suitable jobs for skilled and business migrants. Most migrants come from countries where small business and being involved with cottage industries are the popular source of livelihood. The need for main and stable source of income through employment is obviously a top priority for newly-arrived families. This should not extinguish the entrepreneurial spirit many of us have.”
Walter’s first job in Australia was as a Senior Systems Analyst for an insurance company. He left that career to be more involved in community and set up several small businesses including money remittance, freight forwarding, call centre, real estate, agribusiness, etc.
The awardee also believes that two of the main difficulties hindering new migrants from starting businesses is lack of information and a lack of interest in working and partnering with other people. Thus, he strives to support them to set up small businesses and social enterprises for them to create job opportunities for themselves and their family. He said the Hub is looking at starting a business incubator in Werribee to formally support migrant entrepreneurs. Walter is a graduate and a Fellow of the School for Social Entrepreneurs.
Walter has been serving as volunteer for the community for 20 long years, and yet there are no signs of him slowing down. He fervently believes in the value of community service. He explains, “the goal is to make a difference in the community, to make a positive impact on the lives of others.” One way of giving back to the community, he says, is by becoming actively involved as a volunteer. “If we are not volunteering, if we are not giving back and active in our community, our children will likely not see the value of active citizenship. What kind of society are we going to have? Who will be in our volunteer organisations when migrants will be the majority in 10-15 years?” he asks.
The Wyndham City Mayor himself proclaimed that Walter deserves the awards because of his years of unceasing service and the difference in the community he made. However, the awards themselves are not the driving force behind his continuing work. He said “Volunteers volunteer not for the awards they will get in the future, so simply receiving the award itself is not the objective and obviously is not an achievement.” He confided, “awards are symbols of confirmation, an affirmation that the community served recognise and appreciate the service provided therefore the goal of making a difference is attained, which gives the volunteer a feeling of achievement. So yes, I feel a sense of achievement receiving the awards. I also feel encouraged to do more for my community.”
If there is anything that pleases him, it is to see more Filipinos emerging to become competent leaders in the Australian community. Asked for comments about the current divisive issues confronting the Filipino community in Victoria, the 1975 graduate of the Philippine Military Academy advices, “we need to be more outward looking, explore and venture into the wider community we are a part of – which is hungry for leaders.” He believes that leaders must prepare a succession plan and those who have held office for a long time should give way so that others especially the youth may take the reins and become more involved; meanwhile the experienced leaders may be challenged to rise to greater heights. He calls for his Filipino countrymen to be involved in the local community and in multicultural organisations. He truly believes that Filipinos are some of the most adaptable and most talented people in the world and that many of the Filipinos have strong leadership skills. He states, “we should utilise these talents to raise the Filipino banner higher in the bigger community arena.” He advises that with a passion to serve, and a heart to volunteer, one can make a difference. He declares, “if we can do it, you can do it also. The Filipino can.”
