THE town hall was aglow with yellow, red and black on October 15 as community gathered to celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in a gala event.
The NAIDOC Ball was a formal affair attended by more than 150 people who gathered in their best attire to pay tribute to the rich culture and history of Australia’s first nations.
The evening kicked off with a traditional smoking ceremony outside the town hall where those gathered came forward and cleansed themselves in smoke and to acknowledge the coming together of people for this special event.
Swan Hill’s Imparja Pettit wowed the audience with his didgeridoo playing before the event moved inside the hall for more formalities.
A group of more than 20 local children aged from 3-17 entertained the crowd with traditional dances.
Dressed in traditional attire and tribal paint, the up-and-coming next generation did their culture proud and are a promising attribute to ensure Aboriginal culture is not lost in the region.
Hosts Toby Kirby and Jacinta Chaplin welcomed Wamba Wamba Elder Aunty Vicki Clark to the stage for a formal Welcome to Country speech and Roe Hansen and Charmaine Anton took the best dressed award and were crowned Mr and Mrs NAIDOC for the 2022 ball.
The evening progressed with a two-course dinner and music by the band The Stray Blacks, who got the crowd jumping on the dance floor.
Mallee Aboriginal COVID Response Network organised the evening and committee member Tayla Donaczy said she was delighted with the way the evening turned out.
“It was so great to see community come together in their finest attire to enjoy a night of music, dancing and celebration of culture,” she said.
“The Aboriginal community of Swan Hill and surrounding districts are very proud of their heritage and it was great to showcase some of that on the night.
“We hope to return again with another bigger and better NAIDOC Ball in 2023.”
