Moree’s Miyay Birray Youth Services has received $3,000 to conduct NAIDOC Week activities in Moree. Miyay Birray CEO Darrell Smith, left, Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall and manager Steve McIntosh.
Friday, 24 June 2016
IN a few days, NAIDOC Week kicks off across the Northern Tablelands, backed by $24,500 in State Government funding, local State MP Adam Marshall announced today.
Mr Marshall said the diversity of the celebrations provided something for everyone.
“NAIDOC week reminds us that modern Australia has unbroken links with the world’s oldest culture,” Mr Marshall said.
This month, DNA sequencing by researchers at Griffith University established beyond doubt that Aborigines were indeed the first people to settle this continent.
“We all know that the old and the new often have an uneasy co-existence, but the nature of next week is celebration – a celebration that these cultures exist, and are woven through Australia’s landscapes and continue through those descended from its original people.”
NAIDOC – National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee – annually runs a weekly celebration of the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The 12 events that the NSW Government is sponsoring across the Northern Tablelands have something for everyone.
| Organisation | Activities | Funding |
| Armidale Regional Council | Celebration of NAIDOC activities, street march, flag raising ceremony and cultural and activities day. Judging of Department of Fair Trading Art competition as well as traditional games, performances and barbecue | $3,000 |
| Armidale Neighbourhood Centre | A cultural festival to honour song lines and strengthen cultural identity. Activities involving music, dance, food and stories. | $2,500 |
| Arts North West | Arts North West will curate a print media exhibition with the support of local newspapers. The exhibition will allow two Aboriginal artists from the 12 contributing ANW LGAs to submit works based on the NAIDOC week theme. These works will form the print media exhibition and will be accompanied by a profile of the artist and the story of their work. LGAs include Armidale Dumaresq, Glen Innes Severn, Guyra, Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains, Narrabri, Moree Plains, Uralla, Tenterfield, Tamworth, and Walcha. | $3,000 |
| Guyra Preschool and Long Day Care Centre | Morning tea, complete welcome to country and dance, elders attend, play didgeridoo and tell dreamtime stories, art and face painting, art competition. | $500 |
| The Guyra Neighbourhood Centre | To conduct an Aboriginal art project Youth workshop to be facilitated by recognised Aboriginal artist Brian Irving, combining techniques and history into the creation of the artwork. | $500 |
| Guyra Local Aboriginal Land Council | Celebrations include raising Aboriginal flag, Welcome to our Country in our Banbai language, Aboriginal bush tucker cooking competition (or dishes), contemporary Aboriginal activities event and a few ‘walkabouts’ to remember our ancestors’ ways of tradition. | $3,000 |
| Armajun Health Service, Inverell | One week of community activities including street march, community barbecue, cultural display & Indigenous games, cultural tour, cultural activities at local schools | $1,000 |
| Fairview Retirement Village, Moree | NAIDOC Day of celebrations for our elder aboriginal aged and frail residents who are unable to attend local celebrations | $500 |
| Thiyama-Li Family Violence Service, Moree | The Talent Quest will be an organised event where the community will be given an opportunity to share their talent on stage. | $3,000 |
| Miyay Birray Youth Service, Moree | This year’s 2016 National NAIDOC theme – Songlines: The living narrative of our nation highlights the importance of Songlines to the existence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The theme will be incorporated into the multiple planned events that committee has planned for the week. For example Theme will be addressed at the opening ceremony, incorporated into the Family and Cultural Day and Trivia Night. | $3,000 |
| Mungindi Local Aboriginal Land Council | Our NAIDOC ball will be the celebration of our Aboriginal History and Culture as we come together as a whole community. We will acknowledge our past and present with stories, food and music in which we will focus on our 2016 Theme, Songlines. We are inviting special elders as a guest speaker to tell stories and to host activities such as a quiz on our Aboriginal history and culture. We will then have a dinner with some traditional and new foods of our culture. Followed by a local band that sings and dances to our Aboriginal music past and present. | $3,000 |
| Anaiwan Local Aboriginal Land Council, Tingha | Tingha NAIDOC Street March, flag raising and morning tea celebrations. | $1,500 |