Always Was, Always Will Be was the theme for this year 2020 NAIDOC EVENT.
NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who have occupied this land for over 65,000 years. It recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the traditional custodians of these lands.
Nepean Community & Neighborhood Services took part in Sydney Region Aboriginal Corporation NAIDOC Event in Penrith on Thursday 12th November 2020.
The event was a great opportunity to connect with community, have a yarn, share stories, learn from Aboriginal community members, take part in Aboriginal culture and taste some of the amazing foods that were available.
It was also a great occasion to reconnect with services and members of the community as COVID-19 has made this difficult in recent times.
The event was high spirited, colorful and an exciting experience for all.
This year sadly we were unable to hold our annual event NAIDOC Cup due to COVID-19 restrictions which we know so many young people look forward to each year. So in celebration of NAIDOC Week we thought we would look back at some of the previous years, our first event was in 2011, which was much smaller than the event we see today. In 2014 we had 12 schools with over 600 kids attending, this increased to 21 schools and over 750 students in 2016 and our biggest year last year with 30 local schools participating with over 1500 students on the day!
We hope that in the future when the restrictions ease (we hope next year!), we can hold a bigger and better NAIDOC Cup for all the students that missed out this year. Watch this space!