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Garbutt award for community work
BY ALF WILSON
Townsville’s Garbutt Magpies Sporting & Cultural Association has won a Queensland Reconciliation Award in the category of Community.
“[It] was a dream come true to honour Our Elders of Past, Present and Future”, club stalwart Randall Ross said.
“The recognition of the award is not only for our Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islanders, Australian South Sea Islanders but also our Non-Indigenous who we proudly call family.
“We also honour our families and our great sponsors who have been apart of the Club in the past 10 years to ensure the legacy of Garbutt Magpies who formed in 1955, continues into the future.
“Many of the Elders from the past were responsible for developing future leaders and we want to ensure we continue to develop our future generations as future leaders of today.”
Mr Ross travelled to Brisbane with club President Leon Stubbs and former great player and elder Francis Tapim for the award presentation.
Two of the club’s founding members were the late Anastasia Maria Ross (nee Kanak) and her husband Manny Ross of Aboriginal Juro and Kunjuun heritage.
They were the grandparents of Mr Ross who also played with the club.
Mr Stubbs said the Garbutt Bombers Sporting and Cultural Association followed the following Kukatja saying:
“Mariakarti nyawa, kurranyu nyinama. Look back if you want to go forward.”
“Garbutt Magpies are intergenerational and are proactive in reconciliation processes,” Mr Stubbs said.
Mr Stubbs said the storylines they had created and maintained were responsible for many projects including The Garbutt Magpies Cup for schools, NQ First Nations Cricket Carnival, Cultural Camps, Community participation activities such as involvement in NAIDOC Day and Mabo Day.
“Garbutt Magpies are about creating an identity for positive experiences,” he said. Meanwhile the club took 47 children and 23 adults to Magnetic Island in late May for an AFL participation day.
They juniors were from the affiliated club the Garbutt Bombers Magpies and it was a huge family event.
“We made a huge day of it having a barbecue at Alma Bay and going for a swim and just relaxing,” Mr Stubbs said.
