Martina Carney will never forget her first Australia Day as an Aussie citizen.
After moving 'Down Under' 13 years ago, the German native stood alongside almost 100 other people from around the globe in Lake Macquarie yesterday to take the pledge of commitment at the annual Australia Day citizenship ceremony.
"I came to Australia because I loved the country and I wanted to start a new life, and that's what I did," Ms Carney said.
"Obviously, I miss my family and friends but I'm super-happy about it."
"It's the sights, the weather and the people – it is so welcoming here and I have never experienced that anywhere else. It's just a wonderful country."
Govardhan Reddy Gaddameedi moved to Australia from India eight years ago to study IT, deciding to stay after falling in love with the place and its people.
"It's a multicultural country, it's one of the safest countries to live in and it's a beautiful country," he said.
"This is a very exciting day for me. I'm very happy."
Lake Macquarie Mayor Kay Fraser presided over the official proceedings, but did so at a distance due to testing positive to COVID-19 on Thursday morning.
"Australia is one of the most multicultural nations on the planet, with more than one in four people in our country born overseas," she said.
"So it's fitting that on a day when we reflect on who we are as a nation, we welcome people from all corners of the globe to make this their home."
"New citizens bring with them the culture and traditions of their home country. I'm so grateful that the vast majority of people in Lake Macquarie respect and embrace these things, and recognise how much they enrich our community."
Shortland MP Pat Conroy, who stepped in at the 11th hour to host the rest of the ceremony, said more than 165,000 people nationwide became Australian citizens in 2022,
"It's an immense privilege to share this special day with our 96 newest citizens, and I was honoured to welcome them to our country on behalf of all of Lake Macquarie," he said.
