Omar Kowaider and Joanna Bryla believe the best years of their lives together began since they moved to Young three years ago.
The husband and wife live on an expansive property with their two young children in the NSW southwestern slopes.
Horses, sheep and an active kelpy roam the farmland. A dozen chickens and a rooster can also be heard from their coup.
They say Young moves at a slower pace than what they left behind in "sterile" Sydney, something they observed after the COVID-19 outbreak.
"There was no sense of camaraderie or community [in Sydney]. There was no warmth anymore," Bryla told SBS News.
"Young was a way to escape that, to feel a bit of freedom," she told SBS News.
Omar Kowaider and Joanna Bryla with their children. Source: SBS News / SBS News/Jack Giam
"You get more bang for your buck out here. In terms of renting, there's a significant difference [as compared to Sydney]," Kowaider said.
He said the rent they would pay in a western Sydney home would be around twice that of what they are paying in Young and for a bigger space.
The couple believes the move has helped strengthen their relationship with their faith and also with each other.
"When you're in Sydney, you're so busy you don't have the time to sit and really connect with your partner," Bryla said. "Here, we were able to learn things about each other … and rebuild the friendship that we had before we were married."
A thriving Muslim community
With a population of around 10,000, Young is more than 370 kilometres away from Sydney and is best known for its rich cherry-growing heritage. There isn’t a single traffic light in town and everyone is less than a 10 minute drive from one another.
And Kowaider and Bryla are among hundreds of Muslim families who have ditched the major capitals to move there.
It’s believed most of them settled here over the last five years, but their imprint on this town dates back to the late 1980s.
Bassem Ali (second from left) with his family in Young, NSW. His parents were amongst the first Muslims to call this rural town home nearly 40 years ago. Source: SBS News
Ali, 51, said his family opted for a lifestyle that resembled what they had left behind in the villages of northern Lebanon.
"My parents came from a farming family, and my uncle had orange orchards in Lebanon. And, they were vegetable growers in Lebanon," he said.
"I think they just took the risk, and they liked it, it paid off. I do think people try and stay with their community, but [people shouldn’t] be afraid. We did it, 37 years later, we're still here."
Four decades later, Arabic has become the second most spoken language in Young after English, and it's said that out of every 10 locals, one is Muslim.
The growing need for a new mosque
A drawcard for the Muslims moving here is the town's small mosque, which opened in 1994, and is managed by Sydney’s Lebanese Muslim Association.
Abdullah Sultan, the head of committee at Young Mosque, said the move is a no-brainer for young Muslim families.
“[Young] is away from the city, there's a mosque, there's a small community. Just by me saying that to you, you would want to move here,” he told SBS News.
People plant trees but they don't pick their fruit. Their future does. And that's how we looked at it.Bassem Ali, Young resident
Local mayor Brian Ingram said the Muslim community’s contributions to the town have been invaluable.
“[The Muslim community] just jump in every time with donations and time and thousands and thousands worth dollars, worth of contributions,” he said.
"They don't put it out there to highlight it. They don't do it for that. They do it because they care. And that's part of becoming a big part of our community."
Emad Hamdy, Imam at the Young mosque. Last year, construction began for the new mosque that’s nearly five times bigger than the current one Source: SBS News / Jack Giam
That was clear this , which was celebrated in Australia at the end of March, as the festive conclusion of the holy month of Ramadan.
The local mosque ran out of floor space for worshippers who had congregated there to offer the customary Eid morning prayer.
Last year, construction began for the new mosque that’s nearly five times bigger than the current one, and is expected accommodate more than 1,000 people.
Abdullah Sultan, the head of committee at Young Mosque, said the move to Young is a no-brainer for Muslim families. Source: SBS News / Jack Giam
A 'surreal' experience
Sultan said it is a symbol of the community’s growth.
"A magnificent place of worship like this is going to attract more people to our town, increase that pool of potential and create opportunity for our children," he said.
Kowaider agrees, adding they found peace in the open spaces and a stronger connection to faith that Young had to offer.
"I believe … any kind of rural community brings out the best in you," Kowaider said.
"I think it definitely lets the soul search and gives it that yearning of coming back to where we belong and being closer to God.”
Where it all began on Ali’s family farm, he said it is "surreal" to see his family’s roots spread and grow into a flourishing town.
"We needed to establish something for the community and for the future. And that's how everything starts, doesn't it?," he said.
"People plant trees but they don't pick their fruit. Their future does. And that's how we looked at it."
