Minto Stories Shared
Minto Stories Shared in Local Media
The Campbelltown Macarthur Advertiser continues its series of presenting stories gathered through the Remembering Minto project. We encourage you to read each story and leave a comment. To go to the website, click here
Launch of Minto Book and Website
The full range of emotions – from sadness to joy and excitement – were on display at Minto Community Library for the launch of the Remembering Minto book and website on May 17, 2007.
Remembering Minto was initiated by residents of the public housing estate in the wake of redevelopment announcements in 2002. Residents formed the Remembering Minto Group to capture the stories, memories and images of Minto and its community.
The book and website have been coordinated by Western Sydney arts and technology organisation Information and Cultural Exchange (ICE) and the Remembering Minto Group, with support from the NSW Department of Housing and many community partners.
Stories of a rich landscape
Minto is a community undergoing enormous change. Sections of the Minto public housing estate, built in the 1970s, have recently been demolished and many residents relocated. Much of the estate will soon be gone, and the landscape transformed in coming years. This redevelopment was the impetus for residents, many of whom who had lived in the area for two to three decades, to record their stories.
Marking Memories on the Minto Map
“The stories and images collected for the Remembering Minto book and website reflect the diversity, humour and resilience, as well as the adversities and challenges of the Minto community,” said ICE Director Lena Nahlous. “ICE has been fortunate to have had this opportunity to work alongside Minto residents and other local agencies to develop this project.”
The story of the Minto estate is interesting and sometimes controversial. When the first public houses were built in 1976, residents had to contend with very limited services – no doctor, no shops and a bus service that only ran once daily. In 1978 Minto hit press headlines when children from public housing were not permitted to attend local schools. Despite these hardships, and perhaps because of them, Minto residents formed a tight-knit community.
Verna Barker, a resident since 1980, read her story at the launch and described the culture of compassion on the estate: “People used to come to our door and ask for eggs and bread and butter and everything. And you just used to give it to them. You didn’t question it because you knew it was the surroundings you were living in. It was coming from your heart. You just give it and you never ask for it back.”
Remembering Minto has been embraced by residents of Minto, many of whom are still coming to terms with the impact that the re-development and relocation have had on the community. Julie Marriott, whose family lived in the area for two generations, wants to be able to pass on stories of Minto to her own children: “Remembering Minto is a fantastic idea because we need to remember it, what Minto was like, especially when it’s going to be changed completely. Now, I’m married with three boys of my own. Now, I want to tell the story of Minto to others in some way.”
Steve Pigram and the Minto Map
Bev Harvey, a resident and founding member of Remembering Minto project made the trip back from Port Macquarie to be the MC at the launch, where she has lived since she was relocated, “My 21-year-old – she’s really mature for her age – and I think that growing up in Minto has taught her that: the rough, the good and bad. She takes everything in her stride…In Minto nobody was better than you and you were all treated the same. So that’s what I miss, not having people accepting me and my family for who we are.”
Books are free for residents of the public housing estate. Contact ICE on 9897 5744.
Visit www.rememberingminto.org.au for more information and stories.
[Article posted 23 July 2007]
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Stories of Minto broadcast on ABC | 6 July 2007
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Minto ‘remembered’ in new book and website | 24 May 2007
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