National NAIDOC Week 2023 commences Sunday 2 July and will continue until Sunday 9 July, with Wagga Wagga's celebrations to begin with a march down Baylis street and flag raising ceremony.
NAIDOC Week is held annually during the first week of July to recognise and celebrate the history, culture, and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
The theme for this year's NAIDOC Week is 'For Our Elders' acknowledging the important roles Elders have played in First Nations communities, leading the way through their actions, advocacy, sharing of knowledge and nurturing the younger generations who will one day be Elders themselves.
Council's Aboriginal Community Development Officer Bernard Higgins is one of the members of this year's Mawang Gaway NAIDOC Committee and said the committee has made strong considerations of the theme for this year's events.
"With this year's theme being For Our Elders it was important for the community to organise events that our Elders could attend and celebrate with their families and friends.
"For the NAIDOC Dinner this year the Elders will be in the spotlight with everyone looking forward to a performance by Uncle Roger Knox.
"Many of our Elders tend to miss out on participating in celebrations because of barriers such as costs and transportation, so we have worked hard to remove these limitations to enable them to come along and be celebrated for everything they have contributed to our community and the continuation of our culture and people" Mr Higgins said.
During NAIDOC week several events will be held in Wagga Wagga, commencing with the march down Baylis street and flag raising ceremony on Monday 3 July, from 10am.
The march will start on Morgan Street (near Baretta Lane) with a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony, it will then head down Baylis Street to the Wagga Wagga Civic Centre where the flag raising ceremony will take place at 11am.
Various family and youth NAIDOC events will be held across the city throughout the week, including a book launch of Bidhi Galing (Big Rain) by Anita Heiss at the Wagga Wagga City Library, and community events at the Mary Kidson Hall in Turvey Park, Kooringal Hub, Tolland Hub, the Ashmont Community Resource Centre, and the Ngurra Youth Hub in Ashmont.
The Mawang Gaway NAIDOC Committee invites all of Wagga Wagga to come along to the Family Fun Day at Riverside (near the Wagga Wagga Beach) on Friday 7 July, where there will be fun activities for everyone including performances from the Mighty Yak, colouring-in, face painting, slides, 3x3 basketball, and yarns at the Yarning Circle.
NAIDOC Week celebrations will conclude with the 'For Our Elders' NAIDOC Dinner onSaturday 8 July at The Gardens Function Centre, Wagga Wagga Botanic Gardens. Hosted by the Mawang Gaway Committee, this event is free for First Nations Elders to attend and will include dinner and entertainment by Roger Knox with Rose Quartz acting as the emcee.
