In 2014 The Gymea Community Aid and Information Service (GCAIS) received a NSW Heritage Grant administered by the Royal Australian Historical Society on behalf of the NSW Government.

The Gymea Community Aid and Information Service (GCAIS) is well known in the Sutherland Shire for its wide-ranging community service work including work with immigrant communities who live in the Sutherland Shire. GCAIS is also interested in preserving the histories of residents who were born in another country. The grant enabled them to work with oral historian, Carol McKirdy, on an oral history project called Chinese Life Stories of the Sutherland Shire. Ten narrators with Chinese heritage volunteered their time and told their stories. The oral histories will be archived at Sutherland Shire Library enabling future generations to learn about the unique and wonderful stories of people who moved from one country to another and the circumstances surrounding such a monumental change. The narrators have made a valuable contribution to Australian Immigration History. Oral history was chosen as the method for collecting the historical narratives because of its authenticity and uniqueness. Also, for some narrators, talking about the past is easier than creating a written account in a second language. The project builds on a previous oral history project carried out by GCAIS with the Sutherland Shire’s Sudanese community. The project was launched at a community event, which included traditional Chinese music and food and a digital story, which summarises the essential themes explored in the oral histories and entices listeners to enjoy the full recordings.

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