• Footscray, Yarraville, Braybrook Star

By Alesha Capone

19th January 2010 11:05:43 AM

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Healthy help ... former refugee Godefa G’her is keen to raise awareness of diabetes in the west. 40469

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GODEFA G’her wants to make a difference in other people’s lives, after his own experience as a refugee.

Although he lives in West Footscray, the 31-year-old spent several years in a Sudanese refugee camp after escaping from war in his native Ethiopia.

He has now been in Australia for over a decade, and worked at a migrant resource centre in St Albans until recently.

“While there, I realised health was a big issue for migrants and refugees,” he said. This inspired Mr G’her to join the Australian Community Centre for Diabetes at Victoria University’s St Albans campus, where he has been a project officer for over a year.

“I’m passionate about assisting people and I believe I’m in a position to make a little bit of difference. Diabetes is a big issue in the west,” he said.

As part of Mr Go’her’s work to raise awareness of diabetes, he is helping to prepare a road-show to tour shopping centres and libraries across the west next month.

Mr Godefa was recently awarded a $5000 scholarship from a Department of Justice program to help refugees pursue tertiary study.

“It helped me to do a course I wanted to do for four years, a human rights course at RMIT which goes for six months,” he said.

A keen student, he has already completed a Masters of Social Science and a Masters of Community Cultural Development since coming to Australia.

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