Allambi was proud to again hold a Reconciliation Morning Tea to show support for Reconciliation with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. The morning tea started with a smoking ceremony by Randall from Gabinya Miyaya. Randall was also generous enough to share with us the wisdom of his grandfather, Uncle Bill Smith, that has been passed down the generations.
Once back in the auditorium, one of our young Wonnarua girls lead the way by opening up with an amazing Acknowledgement of Country to over two hundred plus staff and community for the theme of Bridging Now to Next.
Cody Webb from our TracksHealth team was our MC for the morning. Cody gave us an insight into National Sorry Day and the beginning of Reconciliation Week. He yarned about the themed artwork of ‘Bridging Now to Next’ and read a beautiful poem written by Barry McGrady, one of our Therapeutic Cultural Specialists.
Our guest speaker Nathan Towney, from the University of Newcastle, Office of Indigenous Strategy and Leadership, spoke about his upbringing and the innovative ways to create time and space where First Nations people feel culturally safe to go forward in reconciliation. Nathan gave valuable insights into the education of First Nations people and how much still needs to be done.
Attendees watched a video about the ‘Didge Program’ run by Uncle Alex Nean and Brad Tighe. The ‘Didge Program’ was started as a way of teaching Aboriginal boys and young people about the culture of playing the ‘didge’. The video demonstrated connection to culture and the passion of Uncle Alex to pass on knowledge through learning to play the yidaki.
The event was closed by a panel consisting of Allambi Care CEO Simon Walsh, Nathan Towney and Aunty Deb Swan GMAR who addressed questions around what is next after the referendum and how everyone can keep an open dialogue.