Australia recently welcomed the millionth refugee to arrive on these shores since World War II.

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The occasion will be a celebration of an individual family, who have fled conflict or persecution, finding safety and security in a new homeland.

It will also provide pause for thought on the contributions refugees have made to Australia's society and economy over decades.

We all know of the lives and work of some of our most illustrious refugees such as medical scientist Sir Gustav Nossal, comedian Anh Do or broadcaster Les Murray.

But thousands of other refugees have quietly made contributions that are just as important and that have had a profound effect on the high levels of social cohesion we enjoy in this country.

Over more than 70 years our organisation, AMES Australia, has been helping many of these individuals and families find their feet after arriving in Australia.

Through this work we have learned that overwhelmingly refugees are keen to fit in and contribute. We have also heard so many remarkable stories of resilience and persistence; the inspirational accounts of people who have overcome enormous hurdles to build new lives in this country.

One of these people is Dr Asseel Yako, who fled his home in Iraq after his city was occupied by ISIS.

After spending time in Lebanon, he and his family came to Australia. Asseel worked hard to have his medical qualifications recognised and is now one of just two internal medicine specialists servicing the people Gippsland.

Another quiet achiever is Karen-Burmese refugee Kaw Doh Htoo, who was forced to flee his home three times. Chased out by the Burmese army which burned down his village, he spent almost a decade in a refugee camp on the Thai border.

Now, after rebuilding his life in Australia he has become a leader and inspiration to his community and has opened his own business, while also finding a slice of heaven in rural Victoria.

Syrian........

© The Examiner