Nick Karnel Williams

Yesterday, I had the privilege of meeting with Councillor Talia from Blacktown City Council to discuss starting a separate Higher Learning program for the Blacktown region. We showed her the video, which she really loved.

What’s so special about this lady? Well, she’s the first Pacific Islander in council and represents our people in the largest Pacific community in Australia—right here in Sydney.

Talking with her for quite some time, I got really inspired.

I got inspired because, at the drop of a hat, I realised I could give up chasing the brand dream to serve our people. In that moment, I felt like it was possible for me to become a councillor as well. Someone who sits on local government, someone who can influence change. But why?

In 2016, I moved with my wife and kids to St Marys from Massey, West Auckland, to chase the Australian dream—making money for the family and living comfortably. Years later, though, New Zealand and Australia are quite similar in living costs. Wow. So much for the dream, lol. However, I moved here with the intent to just be a dad to my kids, raise them well, and give them a better shot at life. St Marys was the last place I thought I would live full-time. I hated this place on my first trip back in 2013—I thought it was so ghetto at the time.

Fast forward to 2016, and my thinking was, “Yup, okay, we’ll just bypass this place eventually and move to Melbourne.”

But what I found, as I became accustomed to this place, was how much I would fall in love with it. How my kids had fallen in love with their school and their life. And the dream of moving to a flashier area just disappeared.

I went from hating this area to it becoming a place I truly call home. The more I have been around the community, the more I have fallen in love with it. Yeah, we have our issues here and there, but for me, I truly love it here. I couldn’t imagine moving elsewhere.

In 2016, when I moved here, I was frowned upon for saying I lived here. My Aussie mate put it bluntly:

“The reason it has a bad name is ‘cause there’s too many Islanders living there.”

I mean, yeah, that was the suggestion—but it’s far from the truth. Yes, there are a few of us here, but it’s so diverse in culture. It’s not perfect, but I love it.

Talking with Councillor Talia made me think—what do I want for this community? I want to make change for the better. I want to help make better decisions for our community and to be a voice for us to the rest of the city and the country.

We were that suburb people weren’t interested in, but we are also that suburb that has more cultural growth than any other region. There is so much winning that goes on here, and I’m damn proud to be from here.

Talking with Councillor Talia made me realise how much I want to be here and how much I want to see our community thrive as the best in Sydney. I love the underdog story, and I’m all about building up our people and growing. So I made a conscious decision—

In 2027, I want to run for council.

I want to be on the board, and I want to help with change—not just in St Marys, but across the Penrith district.

I have two years to figure out how to run.
I have two years to figure out the nuts and bolts.
I have two years to get out into my community even more, to see what’s going on out there—one business and organisation at a time.

If Talia can become the first Pacific Islander on council, then I want to be the first Pacific Islander male for St Marys and the Penrith district.

New goals.