NAIDOC Week: Panel discussion at the MCA

A free panel discussion at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia on the theme: For Our Elders Join a discussion featuring Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo, Aunty Ali Golding, Marilyn Russell, and Uncle Ray Davison, moderated by Keith Munro, as part of this year's NAIDOC Week. This event has limited capacity, please arrive early to avoid disappointment. Speaker biographies Marilyn Russell Marilyn Russell is a Bidjigal shellworker from La Perouse, Sydney. Russell learnt the shellwork skills and techniques as a child from her mother, Esme Timbery, echoing Timbery's experience of learning from her mother, aunts and grandmother in her childhood. Russell began shellworking as an artistic enterprise when she returned to the family home in 2007. Her shellworked booties and recreations of the Sydney Harbour Bridge continue the tradition of creating artworks with fabric, shells, glitter and shell grit. Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo Aunty Beryl is a respected Elder and role model from the Redfern community. She is a hospitality teacher and restaurateur. Aunt Beryl has been a great advocate in providing opportunities for young Indigenous people who have experienced long-term unemployment and for whom ongoing work or a career seemed impossible. Her own life has been one of transformation since she first came to Redfern in the 1950s. Now in her mid-seventies, she’s imparting her knowledge, skills and passion for native foods in many of her dishes to mentor her students into stable work and ultimately careers. Aunty Ali Golding Aunty Ali Golding is a grassroots Indigenous leader recognised as a valued Elder who demonstrates compassion, humility and justice. A proud Biripi woman, Aunty Ali grew up on Purfleet, an Aboriginal Mission situated approximately 7km outside Taree on the New South Wales mid-north coast. In the 1980s she became one of the first Aboriginal education assistants at Cleveland High School in Queensland, and in 2004 she graduated from Nungaliya College in Darwin with a Diploma of Theology. Aunty Ali has made important contributions to many national and international forums, including the World Spirit Healing Conference in Canada, International Women’s Day events in parliament, the Women’s Reconciliation Network, the New South Wales Reconciliation Council and AnTAR. In all that she shares so generously, Auntie Ali reminds us how to stay connected and strong. In 2010 she was presented with the NAIDOC National Elder of the Year Award. Uncle Ray Davison Uncle Ray Davison is a Gadigal man, Board member of the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Lands Council and recently retired Aboriginal Health Worker from the Redfern Aboriginal Medical Service. For more than 30 years, he worked for the Redfern Aboriginal Medical Service and as one of the founding health workers was instrumental in the growth and development of the service, dedicated to the health and wellbeing of the local Aboriginal community. Uncle Ray worked in collaboration with the community, boards and management and fellow health service providers to give the Aboriginal community in the heart of Sydney (Redfern) a culturally appropriate and professional health service. Uncle Ray advocates for social justice, community development and empowerment, equity and equality for all. As an Aboriginal health worker, he promoted and accredited fundamental qualities, capacities and capabilities to be delivered by all people involved in the health and wellbeing of the Aboriginal community. Access support The MCA welcomes all visitors and is committed to making its programs and services accessible to everyone. Contact the MCA reception for free Access support on +61 2 9245 2400 or email mail@mca.com.au.