The Enterprise Rose is a symbol of hope, safety and beauty for more than 30,000 immigrants and refugees who entered Australia and lived here at the Enterprise Migrant Hostel in the years 1970 to 1992 before it became Lend Lease Lexington Gardens Retirement Village.
Honouring Enterprise: Tribute at Lexington Gardens is the result of an ongoing community vision to publicly and permanently honour the significant contribution of the Enterprise Hostel. It acknowledges a community aspiration: “Honouring Enterprise is not just about the people, it’s the place... Very important to have something at Lexington... It was my birth place in Australia”.
The original rose gardens were the first site that new arrivals encountered. This garden pays tribute to their memorable experiences of welcome, support and hope through a new rose cultivar named in honour of Enterprise and officially launched at Lexington Gardens on 1 April 2012.
The garden’s circular form is home to the first 200 Enterprise Roses, and symbolises notions of security, protection and refuge. The glass petal exhibits the Hostel’s international role in assisting people from Asia, Africa, Europe, Central America, South America and the Middle East. The welcoming nation of Australia is expressed through open hands, and the new beginnings for so many symbolised by water drops tracing back to their places of origin. The seat documents the sheer number of people who resided at Enterprise; their first home before settling in the general community throughout the nation.
This Tribute to the Enterprise Migrant Hostel acknowledges and continues important personal connections that many have with this site. It invites the general community to learn about the wide reaching impact of the Hostel, those who worked there, and the positive community response led by visionary community leaders. It also provides today’s residents with a beautiful addition to their home grounds.
This garden is a place of continued dedication to an important part of Australia’s rich immigration experience.
This tribute to the Enterprise Migrant Hostel was launched in 2012 by the Hon Nicholas Kotsiras, Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship.
Learn more about the Spirit of Enterprise project by walking the Spirit of Enterprise Trail and watching the video here.
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Migrant Hostel Tribute Garden
