Moving your family to another country is a big decision. Moving from a busy international city to a small, remote Central West community like Tottenham, with a population of just 451 people is an even bigger adjustment.

For Susan, her husband Jomon and their three children, the move marks the beginning of a new chapter – one they are approaching with optimism, curiosity and a willingness to become part of their new community.

The family recently arrived in Australia after many years living and working in the United Arab Emirates, where their three children were born and raised. Susan has taken up a nursing position at Tottenham Multipurpose Service, bringing not just an essential worker to the community, but a family of five.

Their welcome to regional NSW began before they even reached Tottenham.

When the family arrived at Dubbo Airport, Susan’s brother George, who had travelled from Queensland to welcome them, along with Sanu from NSW Health. Sanu helped the family with accommodation, transport and practical guidance as they took their first steps in a new country.

The family also remembers the support of Michelle, the Nurse Manager at Tottenham MPS, who was helpful and supportive from very beginning. Having someone at the workplace who was willing to support them through the transition helped make the move feel more manageable. This support is an important part of Susan’s story and of the family’s experience of being welcomed to regional NSW.

Jomon recalls how much the welcome meant to the family.

“The way they treated us was really wonderful, everyone was so king and helpful.” he said.

Susan and Jomon also spoke warmly about Sanu’s support: “Sanu came to the airport to receive us and arranged the accommodation. Whenever we called, he answered and gave us clear guidance.”

Together, these acts of support helped reassure the family that, although they were thousands of kilometres from the place they had called home, people were looking out for them.

Their time in Dubbo also brought an unexpected connection to their own culture.

The family discovered ORUMA Dubbo’s Malayali community and attended an Onam celebration, a traditional festival celebrated by people from Kerala in southern India. Around 450 to 500 people attended the gathering, giving Susan, Jomon and their children an early opportunity to meet others who shared their language and cultural traditions.

For a family newly arrived in Australia, those connections offered familiarity and a sense of belonging.

“We can have some connections,” Jomon said. “We know where we are, so we have got at least some connections to the people.”

The community keeps in touch through a WhatsApp group, sharing information about gatherings and upcoming events. Although Dubbo is some distance from Tottenham, the connections have helped the family feel less far from a familiar community.

The family had prepared for the distances and differences of regional life before making the move.

Before making the move, Jomon researched Tottenham and regional Australia carefully. He understood they would need a car, that services would be further away and that daily life would be very different from the busy environment they were leaving behind.

“We expect that actually. Prior to coming here, we researched about this place and everything,” he said.

That preparation has helped the family approach their new life with realistic expectations, while remaining open to what a small community can offer.

After almost 17 years living in the UAE, including 12 years with Compass Group, Jomon was accustomed to heavy traffic and a fast-paced lifestyle. Tottenham has offered a very different pace.

“When I come here, it’s really relaxing,” he said. “It’s the total opposite. My mind was really relaxing to drive.”

For Susan and Jomon, settling into a smaller community also means understanding that regional life comes with its own limitations, while making a conscious effort to appreciate the positives.

“It’s a small town. There are limitations, we have to accept that first of all,” he said. “We need to look at what is good as well.”

That outlook is something the family is bringing to their new life together.

Their three children have started at Tottenham Central School and are gradually finding their feet as they adjust from the multicultural environment they knew in the UAE to a new school and community in rural NSW.

As with any major move, there have also been practical challenges. Finding suitable housing in a tight rental market has been difficult, and The Welcome Experience has been continuing to work with the family to explore options.

But those challenges haven’t dampened the family’s determination to make Tottenham home.

Jomon says the move was never originally part of their life plan. He and Susan had established careers and a comfortable life in the UAE. Encouragement from family in Australia, and the possibility of a different lifestyle and greater work-life balance, eventually prompted them to take the leap.

For Susan and Jomon, the decision meant leaving familiar routines and established careers to begin again in a new country. Their priority was their family, and Susan’s nursing role at Tottenham MPS became an important part of the next chapter they are building together.

Our priority has always been our family,” Jomon said.

Despite the scale of the change, Jomon says they have no regrets.

“We took a decision. We have to move forward,” he said.

The family’s story is about more than one person taking up a job. It is about Susan and Jomon making a major decision together, supporting their three children through change and gradually building new connections in a community very different from the one they left behind.

They have arrived in one of the Central West’s smaller and more remote communities without expecting Tottenham to replicate the life they left behind. Instead, they are discovering what their new home can offer, one step at a time.

Along the way, the support of employers, health service staff, family, The Welcome Experience and their newfound cultural connections have helped make an unfamiliar place feel that little bit more familiar.

One essential worker may have moved to Tottenham for a job.

Susan’s nursing role brought the family to Tottenham, but it is the combined effort of Susan and Jomon, and the welcome they have received, that will help them make a home there.