Aunty Therese May Webster
Aboriginal Elder from the Ngarigo People
I was born in 1948, and was one of the smallest babies born in Sydney that year. I was just over one pound (450g) in weight, 12 inches (30cm) long and eight weeks premature. I started school at five and finished at 16. During my early years I grew up in Sydney. I have three younger brothers.
My mother was a Ngarigo woman from the Stolen Generations; she was removed from her mother aged about three months because her father was Aboriginal and her mother non-Aboriginal. During these years we were never to speak about our history as my mother always feared her children would be removed as my father is non-Aboriginal. So she would tell people she was Italian, as she had dark skin, very big, brown eyes and black hair.
“We were never to speak about our history ... She would tell people she was Italian”
I commenced nursing at 16, in those days it was four year hospital training. During my second year Matron found out I was Aboriginal; she was not happy, she said “if I had known you were an Aboriginal nurse you would not be accepted to do your training at my hospital as your race never amount to anything”. From that day on I have always been an achiever, worked harder than others and focused on positive outcomes and never judging others. Much to Matron’s dislike I passed all my exams and completed my training.
In 1968 I commenced my working holiday around Australia travelling by train, motorbike and bus from Sydney to Perth, then onto South Australia, Northern Territory (Alice Springs and Darwin), Queensland and back to Sydney. I was nursing in different hospitals, community nursing and Aboriginal Missions (as they were called in those days); my travels took me about two years. After returning to NSW I continued nursing in the Sydney region, and also travelled to New Zealand.
“Your race never amount to anything”
I married my first husband in 1971 and had my lovely first son in 1972; sadly the marriage failed and we were divorced a few years later.
In 1976 I met my wonderful husband Geoff and we were married in Canberra; we have been married 44 years. Our second son arrived in 1978 and our family was complete. I was still nursing at the time. It was at this time that we became Host Parents for International Students. Laura was our first and one of the best exchange students we had. Since then we have hosted 15 young folk from all over the world.
Geoff was transferred with his work to the Gold Coast in 1989 and I began nursing at Southport Hospital. I decided to establish a Nursing Agency as there was no support for the tourist and relief nursing staff for Aged Care and Home Care. I employed 30 staff and provided relief nursing staff for hospitals, nursing homes, home care, day surgery units, medical centres, private schools and the tourist. I was an entrant for Cancer Council’s Nurse of the Year three times, encouraging staff to participate, raising awareness about cancer-related illnesses and raising much-needed funds.
During the course of the next few years we found time to travel to the UK, Thailand and Canada, where we met Laura’s family for the first time. Our sons had grown and we became grandparents to three beautiful grandchildren.
My lovely mother passed away never knowing her family; she met an Aunty and cousin just before she died, and found out more about her father (who was an Aboriginal man from the Ngarigo People) and her mother’s families. A few years later Geoff’s dear father passed away. We were still hosting exchange students and I became President of our Rotary Club of Robina.
Geoff and I moved to Laidley in Queensland to have a quieter life. We loved living in a rural environment. I decided to retire from nursing after 44 years. I was offered a position as a Manager and Funeral Director and loved this work, providing a service for the community and supporting families when they need it the most. Continued as the Rotary President for three years. I was presented with the Paul Harris Fellowship, the highest award a Rotarian can receive from their Rotary Club and Rotary International, a great honour. It was around this time that I became a Civil Celebrant. After three years I resigned from the Funeral Director position and worked in a role as Indigenous Project Officer looking after four high schools, followed by the position of Indigenous Student Support Officer for the University of Queensland - Ipswich Campus.
I was appointed as an Aboriginal Elder in recognition of my volunteer work for the Aboriginal community and creating awareness of Aboriginal Culture and Heritage for the region of the Lockyer Valley and surrounding areas, and for obtaining funding for programmes in the community. As a Civil Celebrant I would officiate weddings, funerals, naming ceremonies, marriage vow renewals and Aboriginal ceremonies, while still doing all my volunteer work commitments and working full time.
During this time I began implementing programmes and projects for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. I had set up a programme for women and girls. The high schools within the region requested my support to work with their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, and for them to have the opportunity to participate in some of the programmes.
In 2010 I was presented with the Queensland Premier’s Senior’s Award. The Premier was Anna Bligh. In recognition of outstanding volunteer service to the Queensland community. I was one of six Aboriginal Elders to receive this award.
We were still hosting exchange students and managing to fit in travelling overseas to Germany, Sweden, Holland, Hawaii and Canada visiting our past exchange students.
I decided to cut back on my programmes and projects, just visiting schools, mostly primary schools and supporting the Aboriginal children and their families who were in Foster Care. I called it Aunty’s Time, creating awareness about the culture, history and traditions of the Aboriginal people through art, music, songs and Dreamtime stories.
I found the time to be a visiting Elder for the Correctional Centre, supporting the Aboriginal residents and their families who at times found it very difficult.
My husband and I decided to retire to the Fraser Coast. It was during this time that my husband’s very dear mother passed away, followed shortly afterwards by my wonderful father. As we are the eldest in our families we both continue to pass on our heritage, history and traditions to our families so that future generations will know where their folk were from.
I am still participating in my Aboriginal Elders’ volunteer work and some of my Celebrant duties; supporting and helping Aboriginal people and members of our community. Our sons are now 48 and 42; our grandchildren 29, 27 and 23. We have a beautiful great-granddaughter who is five years old.
My mother always had the fear that she would lose her children just like she was removed from her mother because my father was non-Aboriginal. We were never to speak about where Mum came from; when I turned 21 I said to my mother “enough is enough, you should be proud that your are an Aboriginal woman from the Ngarigo People, and we are all too old for the Government to remove us from you”, but she still had that fear because my youngest brother was only four years old at the time. Our very dear mother would be proud that her family of four children has grown and now includes three lovely daughters-in-law and one son-in-law, with seven grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and one beautiful great-great-granddaughter. All are very proud of their Ngarigo heritage. We, her family, are very proud of our heritage from both sides of our families, but moreso of our Ngarigo culture; we continue to share our culture on behalf of my mother, who did not have a voice and was not able to embrace her Heritage or Culture and her Family.
I have found my mother’s family and history and now following up on her father’s family and the Ngarigo people. I have travelled back to Cooma, our Country, many a time to locate anyone that could provide the missing link for Mum. Sadly Mum passed away in 1986, after only just meeting some of her mother’s family, not her mother or father. My search continues and we as her family have returned to our Country and walked the land of the Ngarigo people of the past. I am from the Ngarigo People, Cooma, New South Wales, finding out more and more of our culture, history, traditions, Dreamtime Stories and passing them on to all my family.
Our lovely mother loved the Rock Wallaby. Our eldest son painted her beloved Rock Wallaby by which she had a connection to, in our Aboriginal art and colour. In recognition of her journey and to give her a voice, and to at last say “yes, our Mum was an Aboriginal woman and very proud of her Ngarigo heritage”. I have a saying: never use the word “can’t” because it does not exist; always remain focused and positive.
Live by these three magic words - “Care, share and respect”
Aunty Therese Webster