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education, simple farming skills being no longer seen as sufficient to prosper in
Australia. As he grew older, Serafino withdrew from the timber trade and continued
only in the store. During the laying of the railway line to Heywood, he ran a supply
wagon wdth stores for the supply depots.**
As in Stony Creek, Serafino played an active role in Heywood's community
affairs. Beginning with his membership on the board of the town's local creamery in
1893, he was later elected to the Portland Shire Council, serving as president from
1901 to 1902 and from 1914 to 1915. Here he was known for his flaring temper and
determination to fight for the issues in which he believed. In 1906, as a goodwill
gesture, he presented Heywood wdth its first two street lights, this symbol of progress
being in sharp contrast to the peasant world from which he had departed. He resigned
from the Portland Shire CouncU after thirteen years service, amid expressions of regret
from the other members.**
Despite his wealth and status, Serafino retained many 'peasant' traditions
within his home ~ itself named Ticino. He continued to delight in making salami,
involving several of the local townsfolk in the procedure. Under his supervision a
farmer would fatten a pig, feeding it on wheat to harden its flesh and a butcher would
make available his shop, chopping boards and equipment. When the process had been
completed, the strings of salami would be hung on cup hooks from the vestibule ceiling
of his old pine-lined house to dry and harden. Later they would be cut with a sharp
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