Celebrating NAIDOC Week

In Week 2, Cecil Hills High School celebrated NAIDOC Week by hosting a lunch at the school. National NAIDOC Week celebrates and recognises the rich history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.  This year’s theme ‘Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!’ encourages all of us to champion change, while celebrating those who have already driven and led change in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities over generations.

We were fortunate to have Aunty Carol and South Cares mentors, Rhys Wesser and William Has, join our celebration and present our students with the 2022 NAIDOC lanyards as well as their South Cares jumpers.  These individuals serve as important role models for our local community and each continue to guide, inspire and empower our students.

Congratulations to our Year 7 student, Tamika Chinnery, who was presented with the School Spirit award during this occasion for demonstrating excellence in attendance, engagement and participation in whole school events. Well done!

Each year, NAIDOC Week is an important time to reflect on the challenges faced by First Nations people — to look at how far we’ve come and how far we still have to go.

Here is what some of our Yarn students said about the day:

“NAIDOC week is celebrated on the 3rd of July to the 10th of July 2022. NAIDOC stands for ‘National Aboriginal and Islanders Day Observance Committee’. The theme for this year encourages individuals to come together and make positive changes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities past and present. We celebrated it on Friday to show respect and celebrate the achievements of Torres Strait Islanders and First Nation people.” 

Victoria Johnson, Year 7

“On Friday, Cecil Hills High hosted a NAIDOC lunch inviting Aunty Carol, Rhys Wesser and William Las to join us. We celebrated our culture and together we all thanked Aunty Carol for everything she does for First Nation people all around Australia. We went into deep conversations about lots of things and had a great time. By the end of the lunch we had all gotten to know everyone. Special thanks to all the teachers and principals who took time out of their work to join us. On this day we all received a NAIDOC Rabbitohs hoodie and shirt. To celebrate NAIDOC we put up a banner of the Aborigonal and Torres Strait Islander flag which we made with the hand prints of students on the 25th Anniversary of CHHS. Overall, the lunch was a huge success.” 

Aimee Ward, Year 7

“What I enjoyed about Friday was that we got to enjoy the company of each other over snacks. I also got to meet new people such as Rhys, William and Aunty Carol. I also received the School Spirit award, which was a surprise. It was an experience that I would be proud to attend yearly, continuing the tradition and continuing to meet new people.”  Tamika Chinnery, Year 7

Ms Kumar and Ms Kulevski 

Yarn Group