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Tony Sobredo - Iris Dumenden
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April 28, 2022There is a small army of volunteers that keep our churches and parish running, yet most of us hardly know who they are. Let us introduce you to one of them: Tony Sobredo.
Tony calls Our Lady’s church his ‘second home.’ As such, there is no task or chore he is unwilling to undertake – whether it is cleaning the public toilets in the car park behind the church, mopping the floors of the kitchen in the presbytery, mowing grass, dealing with hard rubbish and graffiti on church grounds, or getting the church ready for Lent, Easter and Christmas. Moreover, he is also a member of the Stewardship Group, the Himig Pilipino choir, and the rosary/novena group dedicated to the Our Lady of Perpetual Help. He has been a member of the choir and rosary group since 1992, and has managed both since 1996. The Himig Pilipino choir sings during the Filipino mass (every third Sunday of the month) and at the 6:30pm mass on the fourth Sunday of the
month, as well as on Easter Sunday.
Tony immigrated to Australia from the Philippines in 1990 together with his wife, Rose, and their sons, Anthony and Paul Jobert. They initially settled in Footscray when the boys were younger, later moving to Braybrook so as to be near the boys’ high school, Caroline Chisholm Catholic College. They finally bought a home and settled in Cairnlea, where they have lived for the last 20 years, and where Tony and Rose are now enjoying their retirement years. Thus, the Sobredos have been part of, and active participants in, the parish for over 30 years. On a typical Monday, Rose would be counting the collection money while Tony cleans the toilets in the car park.
Tony and Rose were both teachers in the Philippines: Tony was a public school teacher, Rose was a college instructor (university lecturer). Tony worked in public schools in the province of Iloilo for 22 years before migrating to Australia: 17 years as a classroom teacher and 5 years as school principal. In Melbourne, he found work with Toyo, a parts supplier to Toyota. The work dried up when Australia lost its car-manufacturing industry, at which point Tony decided to retire. In retirement, Tony has become our parish’s go-to guy and volunteer, fixing anything that doesn’t need the professional services of a tradie. He says he learnt to work with his hands in high school, in the days when students were required to learn vocational arts (such as woodworking) alongside their academic subjects. For these skills, the parish is grateful to all of Tony’s teachers. For their work in keeping our parish humming along, the parish is thankful to Tony and Rose – two of our blessings from above.
