Generosity alters life’s course

The broad smiles of Keivan and Bahar Tohidi give no indication of the hardships endured, challenges overcome and sacrifices made in the couple’s relentless quest for a better life.

Now the owners of a flourishing sewing and alteration business, they have found that life in Bunbury after almost 15 years of searching.

Growing up in the Iranian city of Isfahan, Keivan — the self-described “black sheep” of his family — would question where his life was taking him, even as he learnt the tailoring profession from his father.

“Always I was thinking …‘what do I want from my life?’, ‘how do I want to stand in my life?’ and I wasn’t happy with it, ” he said.

Keivan married Bahar in 2000 and soon discovered they shared a desire to leave Iran.

“I say if you want to go, I’m happy. But you shouldn’t just come with me and do whatever I say, we should do it together and we promised that night and we started, ” he said.

This meant not having children and putting any other plans on hold for the next eight years while they took the necessary steps to emigrate to Australia on a skilled visa which included Bahar completing a three-year English language course.

On August 13, 2008, the couple made it to Bunbury as part of an immigration obligation to spend two years in a regional area.

However, arriving with less than $7000 in savings, the early years in Bunbury were a struggle.

While Bahar could speak English well, Keivan arrived with no understanding of the language and had to teach himself, occasionally asking Bahar to explain words or phrases on a notebook.

“I still have that little notebook and it is just very moving, ” Bahar said.

Keivan said it took him a year to be comfortable with the new language while working full-time at KFC and also running the fledgling alteration service from their home.

In 2009, the couple caught a break with some help from the Bunbury community.

Bahar worked at Cafe Bean and owner John Ventris recommended the couple to his friend Stephen Craddock, who had a small shop for rent on Victoria Street.

Bahar described Mr Ventris’ act of generosity as “the most beautiful incident in our lives”.

With Keivan working 110 hours a week between KFC and their sewing service, the couple established the home they had always hoped for with continued support from the community.

In 2011, they finally welcomed their first son, Alborz.

Keivan was still working two jobs, meaning Bahar had to raise Alborz almost by herself.

“It was a hardship, but it wasn’t at all, because we were walking toward our goal,” she said.

With business going well, Keivan and Bahar almost moved to Melbourne two years ago but their customers begged them to stay.

“We decide to stay and we will stay, ” Keivan said.

“People have been very friendly, very welcoming towards us,” Bahar added.

After buying their first house in 2013, which Bahar calls their “ever-after house”, and having a second son, Aria, the final step in their journey is receiving Australian citizenship.

Bahar has already planned how she is going to celebrate.

“When we get the Australian passport I’m going to buy a very big Australian flag, wrap it around us with the passport and have a photo with my oath, ” she says.

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