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Amooguna children parade helmets with traditional artSix Aboriginal children from the Amooguna Community, who live in and around Alice Springs, highlighted examples of their own artistic culture as they rode through Latrobe City as part last week’s Great Victorian Bike Ride, By Latrobe City Council - 10th December 2003 - Back to News For the six Aboriginal children, who all attend the Irrkerlantye Learning Centre it was a great adventure, as none had ventured interstate before. It was also an awesome experience being among four-thousand bicycle riders.
Head-teacher at the Irrkerlantye Learning Centre, Jenny Buckley, one of the three adults travelling with the children, said the Irrkerlantye Learning Centre began in 1996 as an educational alternative for Aboriginal students considered to be at risk from high levels of substance abuse, violence, their involvement in the juvenile justice system, and dysfunctional and anti-social behaviours.
"The project evolved to include the whole family, as grandmothers and staff realised that this was the best way to make an impact on the lives and behaviours of young students. Adult programs were also developed in art and construction," Ms Buckley explained.
Ms Buckley said each of the children wore a bicycle helmet which in itself was a work of art. "A number of the Arrernte women involved with the Irrkerlantye Learning Centre are well known central Australian artists specialising in dot paintings, ceramics, sculpture and printing. To help fund the trip for the children, they painted the children’s bicycle helmets in traditional art styles. We hope to sell these helmets at the end of the ride to recover some of the costs of bringing the children to Victoria and taking part in the ride," Ms Buckley said.
Ms Buckley said that for all the children it was their first time they’d ever encountered hills and they had some trouble adapting at first.
"Cycling is part of the school culture and while we have been training for the Great Victorian Bike Ride for a couple of months, the children simply aren’t used to hills though, as they don’t exist around Alice Springs. Only one completed the whole ride the first day. However on the second day five of the six young people made the whole distance," Ms Buckley said.
The children were presented with LatrobeFirst riding tops by Deputy Mayor, Councillor Lisa Proctor, when they were welcomed to the municipality at the start of their overnight stop in Glengarry on Tuesday. "The children won a great deal of respect from other riders for the way they tackled the difficulties of the ride. Our LatrobeFirst riders decided they’d be great ambassadors to highlight Latrobe City to other people they meet along the way and in their own community when they get home," Cr Proctor said.
"It would be great if members of our community were able to provide support to the visiting children by purchasing one of their unique bicycle helmets," Cr Proctor added.
Enquiries regarding the purchase of a helmet or sponsorship of the Irrkerlantye children should be directed to Jenny Buckley, telephone 0411 605 483. The Irrkerlantye artists’ works can be seen on their web page www.irrkerlantyearts.com.
Source: www.gippsland.com Published by: news@gippsland.com
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