Family News Edition 70

Waltja Tjutangku Palyapayi Aboriginal Corporation

"Doing good work with families"
Family News Edition 70
3 Ghan Road, Alice Springs NT 0871
Phone: (08) 8953 4488 | PO Box 8274
www.waltja.org.au

From the Executive

Ladies from different areas come together for meetings at Waltja. Some people talk about their problems, how they can fix them. They talk about all the good things happening in their communities too. When the ladies come together, they are happy to see new members and family relations they haven’t seen for months or maybe years. It’s good for ladies to camp together and enjoy themselves.

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I am back as an Executive Director. When the workers come to my community in Papunya, I can help them with language and local knowledge. Waltja staff and Directors can work together and help each other. We listen to and respect the women and help them. We also help Sharijn, and we care for all the staff.

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Waltja is important to us. We come together making and joining with ladies from right round from other places. We are learning from them and the Elders and showing new ones the Waltja Way, helping and listening to each other.

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I have learnt a lot and made new friends, new ways of thinking about things with Waltja. We work together to help one another. We work but we also laugh and tell stories. It feels strong for me when there are lots of women together as one.

The Directors and some of the Members will be meeting in a few weeks to talk about Waltja and the work we do and plan for the next few years. If you would like to be a member or on our Board of Directors, ask Waltja for a membership form. This will be tabled at the next available meeting, and you will be contacted if your application is accepted.

From the Manager

Welcome to Edition 70,
Amazing we have produced 70 editions! We trained countless young First Nations people to learn desktop publishing and art management over this time. Thank you to Jane Clark, Leonard Hillman, and Jessica Muir for helping us all along this journey. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this edition. There are so many positive stories for us to share and hopefully inspire some new ideas for your community.

Waltja has had a very sad year with the passing of some of our long-term Directors and members. The hardest was losing Irene Nangala and Margaret Campbell, both of whom have stayed with us since the beginning of Waltja. But we also miss Marilyn Nangala, Elizabeth Marks, and Erica Ross. These were all strong women and role models for their communities and for Waltja’s Board and staff. We have been blessed to share their lives. I will always be grateful for their support, guidance, and wisdom, their willingness to teach and share their knowledge and culture. Our condolences to all the families who have lost a loved one.

Waltja is pleased to be offered extensions to some of our remote programs, and we are always looking for new funding opportunities to respond to your community needs and ideas. This month Waltja’s Executive have allocated some Waltja savings to help communities celebrate their culture, language, and music. See inside for more details. If you are an organization out bush and want to partner with us in an activity or program, please get in contact. If you would like to work with Waltja, we would be honored to visit you on country, just invite us to be there.
Come in and see us when you are in Alice Springs.

Thank you to our staff for all their efforts this past year. They are an amazing group of people truly trying to work alongside you to bring about better life, education, and wellbeing outcomes. Thank you to our NDIS team, our youth family mental health and children field workers, the strong money team, the art media team, and also to our office staff who work tirelessly to support us and help with emergency relief.
Enjoy this edition and don’t hold back! We want your stories too.

Remembering Irene Nangala

I felt honored to be part of the Waltja family who traveled to Kintore for the memorial and the funeral for Irene Nangala. Waltja was a big part of Irene Nangala’s life, right from the beginning when Waltja was set up. Nangala was elected Treasurer at the first AGM in 1997. She was elected Director and then elected on Executive for most of the time since then—over 20 years—helping keep Waltja strong in culture and governance to do good work for families across Central Australia. Other Executive at the first AGM were Margaret Orr, Marilyn Nangala from Mount Liebig, Margaret Campbell from Titjikala, and Ada Dixon from Nyirripi.

As we traveled down the red dirt roads to Kintore, I was thinking about the journey of Waltja since 1997, and the Directors like Nangala who have held Waltja strong, thought carefully about the work Waltja has needed to do over the years, making big and sometimes hard decisions. Making sure decisions were made only after talking and listening to Directors and members from all the communities and different language groups. Wendy Brown, who was one of Waltja’s founding members, shared some of that story at Nangala’s funeral.

I was also thinking about workers with Waltja over the years, who Irene Nangala cared for, taught, shared stories with, laughed with, and sometimes growled at! On this journey to Kintore were some of the longest-serving Waltja workers; Sharijn, who has been there from the beginning, Kate Lawrence, Lenny Hillman, Lauren Fyfe, and Leela Kruger.

It was very special to be together again for this time, to be with all the people in Walungurru and those who traveled from near and far, who love and respect Nangala. Sharijn said the important thing for Irene Nangala was for people to love and look after each other, to be friends, to be family.
Thank you, Nangala, for showing us this in the way you lived your life.
Joy Taylor

Engawala Art Centre

Engawala celebrated the opening of their new Art Centre with many visitors from Alice Springs and other communities. The event was a great success, with much art sold and admired. The ladies worked very hard to create the artwork for display. It’s open to the public, so please support them with a visit or online.

Janine was born in Alice Springs and grew up in Engawala and Mulga Bore. Engawala, also known as Intiarntwa, is 200 km NE of Alice Springs. Janine attended school in Mulga Bore, Engawala, and Adelaide. A couple of years ago, she started working with Rainbow Gateway in Engawala as a CDP Activity Supervisor. Engawala women expressed interest in establishing an Art Centre, which is now fully operational.

Janine manages the Centre. She is happy the Engawala Art Centre is now being recognized, and they have an art assistant to help with cataloging, measurements, pricing, and training. The Centre has over 30 women artists and has marketed their products in places like the Gem Tree Roadhouse, Todd Mall, and the Desert Mob Markets. Art centres play an important role in the community. They offer cultural leadership, language, and identity while also providing social and wellbeing services. The art centres can be a key source of income, training, and employment. Janine says there is a need to find new markets. She also mentioned that male artists do not have a space from which they can operate and need support.

You can contact Janine at artcentremanager@engawalaarts.com.au and check out the website at www.engawalaarts.com.au.

Anzac Day

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have a long history of military and civilian service. First Australians have served with distinction and bravery in most major conflicts and peacekeeping operations involving Australia.

Indigenous men from other states enlisted when World War II broke out in September 1939. One day after Prime Minister Menzies’ announcement, 50 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men volunteered for the armed forces in the Northern Territory. Notable among these was Reg Saunders, a Gunditjmara man from Victoria, who became Australia’s highest-profile Aboriginal soldier and the first Indigenous Australian to receive a commission in the Army.

Indigenous Australians contributed significantly to the war effort, serving in skilled militias to defend Australia’s northern coastline, and fighting overseas in all theaters of the war, including Europe and Southeast Asia. After the war, Reg Saunders continued to fight for Indigenous rights as a liaison officer in the Office of Aboriginal Affairs.

National NAIDOC Week 2024 – "Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud & Proud"

NAIDOC Week (7-14 July 2024) celebrates First Nations people and communities, honoring their culture and histories. This year’s theme encourages activities promoting healthy outcomes for First Nations people, cultural arts, reconciliation, and storytelling.

Sammy Butcher – Australian of the Year Nominee

Sammy Butcher, a musician and elder of the Papunya community, has dedicated over 40 years to music and helping young people connect with their culture. As a founding member of the Warumpi Band, Sammy continues his work through the Papunya Recording Studio, where he teaches, records, and mentors youth, helping combat substance abuse and suicide in Central Australia.

Cultural Revitalization Project – Boundary Bore

Jennifer Purvis, a Traditional Owner of Boundary Bore, collaborates with Waltja to create cultural resources such as videos, books, and audio to pass down knowledge of bush medicines, witchetty grubs, bush tomatoes, and more. The project aims to preserve cultural stories and knowledge for younger generations.

Tjutangku Tjukurrpa Online Art Store

Aboriginal women from remote Central Australian communities create various artworks, including painted journal covers, bead necklaces, and carvings. These pieces reflect their identity and cultural stories, earning them fair payments. Sales from the Tjutangku Tjukurrpa online art store support Waltja’s emergency relief programs. Visit the store at www.waltja.org.au/artstore/.

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