Cairns health service celebrates their Elders

BY CHRISTINE HOWES

It was all about their Elders at the Wuchopperen Health Services Community Day held for NAIDOC Week last Wednesday in Cairns, deputy CEO Rachael Ham says.

“That’s what we’re doing here today, celebrating our elders, giving them the best special treatment that we possibly can,” she said.

“We’ve actually done a few things this week in the lead up, we had an Elder’s Lunch last week and we’ve done that again today.

“So it’s been about making sure that they’re seated first, feeding them first, giving them gifts, making sure that they’re all together, and sitting with their family and friends and sharing their stories.

“And I guess, from our point of view, it’s been honouring their contribution to our community and in particular today, with Wuchopperen.”

She said their contribution and role to what they did “couldn’t be underestimated”.

“They’re so important,” she said.

“We exist because of them in terms of just our presence and being here and being able to contribute.

“Our health service wouldn’t have existed without our Elders, and in my own family, my grandparents all played a really key role in establishing Wuchopperen, and without them we wouldn’t be here 44 years later.”

“I weave a lot, I love weaving, it relaxes me, so I always weave,” Yessie says.

“The feeling I feel every day, waking up and working with the other five great weavers is awesome.

“Learning, teaching with each other, it’s the first of its kind, so I’m honoured to be a part of it.

“Our ancestors all weaved, and it’s something that has to be passed on and respected.

“I can weave 32 different baskets.

“It’s a healing process, it heals you mentally, physically, and spiritually, all three in one – it heals, you get relaxed

George Kris, St Paul’s

and be creative.

“Young people may not see themselves mucking in and weaving for a wedding or dance group, but they can make art out of it with the creativity, and it will definitely take them a long way, most definitely.

“The traditional art of weaving is a dying art, but looking at other great weavers here and working with them every day, I know that the future of weaving will be saved.

“It’s sad, but please for our generations, our families up in the Straits, pick up the leaf and weave.”

“I was very excited to come down and to meet every other weavers from the other islands and to be a part of this, just meeting them and sharing our ideas and our cultural knowledge with each other,” George says.

“Every day I’m sharing ideas with them and also learning from them.

“It’s something I wish to see more people get involved in.

“I know there is a lot of more weavers up on the islands, and just need them to know don’t be afraid of your talent and your knowledge, or passing down to the next generation, just to revive and survive our weaving – I do wish that in the future that we would have workshops on the other islands.

“We should go back to the coconut and start weaving our baskets to use every day.

“Whatever gift you have, don’t hold onto it, just pass the knowledge to the next generation.

“Find time to sit with the Elders, get the information and learn from them.”

Aunty Emma Gebadi, Cairns (Waiben, Darnley, Saibai, Injinoo)

“I love this,” Aunty Emma says.

“It’s been the most exciting part of my life, I’m going to remind myself not to cry when they leave back home.

“I discovered my passion for weaving when I was eight years old and I used to come home from school and watch the lady next door, she was from Saibai, her name was Ama Keru Ishua, and she’s related to my dad.

“It inspired me to look more into weaving and learn more, and until today, every day I get up and I think, ‘Okay, today I’m going to have a different project to work on something new’.

“I’ve even invented a few of my signature styles.

“I go to schools and I teach children how to weave and the signature rows is one of my best project to teach because it’s easy.

“I have a little business called Oz Master Weaver, and my aim is to bring back the culture.

“We weave the culture into the future because it’s a dying culture. “You see young people walking around, looking down and not interested in our culture to learn our culture.

Aunty Mowe Billy, Masig

“I love weaving because I’ve been weaving in my life since I was a child,” Aunty Mowe says.

“I love weaving.

“I was born in Daru, and got married to an islander and then came to make Yorke Island my home.

“I had three kids and I love weaving, playing with the leaves.

“Everyday life at York, I just do weaving.

“This has been a good experience for me.

“The people in the Strait, the young people need to come out, like these boys here – we need the younger ones to come and join in and let us weave together.”

Hans Ahwang, St Paul’s

“For the weaving, I would just do it in my own time or if there’s an event coming up, then I will do some weaving or decorate,” Hans says.

“Weaving is new to me, all the family’s seen all my work when there was a big wedding recently and everyone was surprised that I do weaving.

“I learned from elders, learned from videos, or just by looking at photos, then I put my hand into practise and created.

“They’re looking down to their phones, they’re on social media and it’s so sad.

“But here, I’m so excited I’ve only been sleeping four hours a night.

“It’s very important.

“It’s a milestone – a big step for me in acknowledgement, to get out there more and be recognised.”

“This project, it’s like a boost of excitement for our culture and fingers crossed this will be ongoing because this is one of a kind to keep the weaving in practice.

“It’s important for us to learn the traditional coconut weaving and it’s never too late to learn how to weave, dance or sing.

“There’s always a place and time you make with sitting with elders, spending time with the elders for their knowledge and teaching.

“So for me, it’s never too late to learn how to weave. Hopefully this will keep the fire burning and also teach the next generation.”