WITH Reconciliation Week looming on the horizon, Aunty Noeline Briggs-Smith reminds locals of an upcoming event on Thursday May 31 that will not only see a three-decade long saga draw to a close, but also help to mend as many years of hardship in the Aboriginal community.
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“One-hundred and seventy six plaques will be laid at the unmarked grave sites of Aboriginal people, giving them back their identities,” Noeline said.
Between 1940 and 1968, deceased Aboriginal people in the Moree community were buried in the segregated Aboriginal portion of the cemetery, often without adequate markings. Add the passage of time and numerous floods, and many identities were lost.
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“The graves were dug by hand during that time and because of that they were shallow. When the floods came, they left many grave sites exposed and they also washed away some of the plaques,” Noeline said.
Noeline has spent the past 33-years jumping between court records and burial registers to identify the 213 graves.
After successfully raising $5,000 through an online campaign, she was able to take on Gwydir Industries to manufacture the plaques.
She has been in talks with elders and members of the Aboriginal community about the plaque-laying service since early March, intent on the smooth restitution of the grave sites.
The Remembrance Day service will kick off at 10am at the Aboriginal portion of the local cemetery.
Moree Secondary College and St Philomena’s high school students will lay the 176 remaining plaques.
“The teachers will supervise the children as they glue the plaques to the unmarked grave sites with a glue gun,” Noeline said.
Noeline was quick to point out these plaques are only temporary.
“This day will be about marking the unmarked graves, returning an identity to the deceased and reconnecting families with their ancestors. It will be left up to the family’s discretion to lay a permanent plaque.”
Moree Plains Shire Council director of corporate services Mitchell Johnson and councilor Kerry Cassells will represent MPSC on the day.
Cr Cassells will present an address on behalf of council.
Stephen Porter will deliver the smoking ceremony and play the didgeridoo for the wreath and flower laying service.
“This will give a chance for family members to lay a flower or wreath at the grave site of a deceased family member,” Noeline said.
Pius X will set up a marquee to house the guests and elders.
A morning tea will also be provided to service goers.
For many families, it will be a historic moment to heal and reconnect. Noeline Briggs-Smith said she will finally breathe a sigh of relief.
“When I was a kid, granny Lizzie would always take me down to the cemetery on Sunday. That was a thing families did in those days. At the time, I asked her why it was so important to visit. She told me that even though my family was gone, their spirits lived on. It was granny Lizzie who instigated the cycle that has kept me going for so long,” she said.
