HopeTown NAIDOC Cultural Day

On Friday the 10^th August, HopeTown held NAIDOC celebrations for local schools and the community to attend.

The day started with an intimate and unforgettable private ceremony led by Uncle Ralph and Rikki. The whole HopeTown School Community and distinguished guests, were led by Uncle Ralph through a traditional Aboriginal smoking ceremony which also payed respect to the land on which the school is built.

At 10am, local schools arrived to join in us in an opening ceremony dedicated to the theme of NAIDOC, Because of Her We Can. Students were also blessed to hear and see descendants of Australia's first people sharing traditional Aboriginal stories, dances and music performed by Brendan Moore and student Jake Barker. 

Throughout the day HopeTown and visiting students participated in various cultural activities.

• Thanks to EG Incursions, students experienced aspects of Aboriginal life and culture through virtual reality headsets.
•  Brendan Moore led a walk through the Hopetown bush track where the community were able to taste traditional Aboriginal berries and jams.
• The RYSS bus provided for a relaxing and creative space where students could chill out, play a variety of games and mix new beats in their DJ booth.
• Thanks to Uncle Ralph, students were educated on what Aboriginal life was like prior to settlement and the tools used by Aboriginal people to hunt and gather.
• Everyone involved on the day contributed to a large-scale community mural to acknowledge, remember and pay their respects to the NAIDOC theme, Because of her we can.

HopeTown would like to thank North Gosford Learning Centre, Wyong Creek Public School, Tuggerah Public School, Wyong High School, Tuggerawong Public School, The Annex support unit for joining us for the activities; RYSS, Brendan Moore from the Sydney Botanical Gardens, Uncle Ralph and Rikki for running activity stations; Blue Haven PS for lending us a staff member and drone to film our celebrations and the wider community for joining us on a successful and memorable day.