• Where it all began
• Timeline of important events
• Meet Some Locals
  • Meet Jack (Jaroslov) Wirth
  • Meet Guni (Gundega) Buckpitt
  • Meet Maria Kowalczuk
  • Meet Henry Nigsch
  • Meet Olga Mrjana
• Filmed Interviews

Meet some locals

Share in the real life stories of those people who lived and worked at the Bonegilla Migrant Reception and Training Centre.

Meet Jack (Jaroslov) Wirth

Jack Wirth was a young 20 year old farmer when he came to Australia from Czechoslovakia in August, 1950. He arrived at Port Melbourne on the ship “Fairsea” after a 33 day journey from a refugee camp in Germany.

Meet Guni (Gundega) Buckpitt

Guni Buckpitt was nine years old when she arrived at Bonegilla. Originally from Latvia, she had spent five years moving from camp to camp across Germany.

Meet Maria Kowalczuk

Belarus, a landlocked country in eastern Europe, was a world away from Australia when Maria Kowlczuk arrived at Bonegilla in 1947 as a young married 17 year old.

Meet Henry Nigsch

Henry Nigsch left Austria at the age of 33 with his wife and young son, arriving in Australia as post war migrants in 1955. Fifty-five years later, Henry still lives in Wodonga.

Meet Olga Mrjana

At first, Olga Mrjana didn’t want to come to Australia; it was too far away from Europe. However, after her recent visit back to Slovakia, her daughter thanked her for making the long and tedious journey from Germany.