Doctor Sanjaya Gamage says it was the slow yet peaceful pace of life that first attracted him to Echuca.
Two weeks ago, he, his wife and one of their children took the pledge and officially became Australian citizens.
Originally from Sri Lanka, Dr Gamage said he lived in Singapore for four years prior to coming to Australia.
“When we first arrived, we lived in NSW, then we moved over to Victoria in 2021 — initially living in Bendigo and then making the move over to Echuca,” he said.
They moved to Australia in 2017, when their eldest was child was three years old.
Since then, the family has grown to include two more children.
The couple’s eldest is now aged nine, their middle child is two and their youngest is 14 months.
Although only a new citizen, Dr Gamage has demonstrated a strong passion for improving the health of the Echuca-Moama community.
He works as a general practitioner at the Echuca Medical Centre.
“We moved here, in part, because I am an international graduate who needed some experience in regional Australia,” Dr Gamage said.
“I’ve also just always loved regional areas and towns. I don’t love the traffic and the congestion on the roads that city life brings with it.
“In Echuca, you can park anywhere, you can drive anywhere in a short amount of time, there are rarely any traffic jams and the people within the community are friendly.”
Dr Gamage said the citizenship ceremony was a special day for the entire family, who took pride in becoming citizens.
The Gamages were one of 14 families or individuals who received their Australian citizenship at the Echuca ceremony on September 14.
Others to become Australian citizens were: Yasmine Ahmed, of Echuca (from Egypt); Amarjit Singh, of Kyabram (India); Steven Hall, of Stanhope (United Kingdom); Jins Joseph and Jewel Joseph, of Echuca (India); Aubrey Kember, of Echuca (Philippines); Mariah Kingma, of Gunbower (United States); Paula Ledda, of Echuca (Argentina); Dinsi Maddumabandara, of Echuca (Sri Lanka); Allen Magno, of Rushworth (Philippines); Jonathan O’Connor, of Echuca (Ireland); Midhun Pallipparambi Babu, of Echuca (India); July Rajan, of Echuca (India); Hani Sakr, Mohamed Sakr and Sarah Sakr, of Echuca (Egypt); and Kamelia Vafadar, of Echuca (Iran).
Campaspe Shire Mayor Chrissy Weller was there to congratulate all the new citizens.