20/10/2026
Growing up in Shanghai during the Cultural Revolution, Shou Min Guo experienced a childhood shaped by uncertainty and hardship.
His career as a sailor brought him to Australia throughout the 1980s, where the kindness of strangers and opportunities for a better life inspired him to make Australia his home.
In 1989, Shou arrived in Sydney with very little money. He found work on a building site the very next day, balancing multiple jobs while studying English. He was later reunited with his wife and young daughter, and together they built a new life in Australia.
Today, the Guo family's migration journey is permanently honoured on Australia's National Monument to Migration.
Every Chinese-Australian family has a story. Is yours being remembered?
The Australian National Maritime Museum is inviting Chinese migrants and their families to be part of a dedicated Chinese Heritage Panel, recognising the journeys, sacrifices and contributions of Chinese Australians.
Have your name or the name of a loved one permanently inscribed in bronze, preserving your family's story for generations to come.
Be part of the Chinese Heritage Panel. Register today: https://www.sea.museum/en/support/national-monument/honouring-chinese-migrants
