The Long Walk - 2009 Women's Luncheon

Program

The Long Walk has held an annual Women's Luncheon since 2006 to recognise the contribution of women in the original walk to Canberra, to celebrate Indigenous women's leadership, and to faciliate networking opportunities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous women. The event promotes the important role Indigenous and non-Indigenous women have played as leaders and peacemakers in their communities. This year it is also a key fundraiser for The Long Walk's Indigenous Cultural Exchange.

Buy a seat or buy a table or donate a seat to an Indigenous woman who may otherwise not be able to attend. This year The Long Walk are offering donated seats to the Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention Legal Service and the Koorie Night Market to distribute to their clients and members.

Guest Speakers

Leslie Turner-Long

Patron, The Long Walk Women's Luncheon

Announced as the patron of the Women's Luncheon in 2008, Leslie Turner is the woman behind the man, Michael Long. She is also a leader in her own right, having worked as a teacher and in other capacities in Indigenous education, including as the Principal of the Glenroy KODE (Koorie Open Door Education) School while Michael was playing at Essendon.

Patricia Harrison

Lead Artist, The Long Walk's Indigenous Cultural Exchange

Patricia Harrison (Trisha) is a Gunai/Kurnai Yorta Yorta woman raised in Dandenong. Trisha's cultural skills as an Indigenous basket weaver were passed down to her by her grandmother, Patricia Harrison Senior. Living with her Nan and Pop, Wally Mongta, there was no getting away from learning and helping with the weaving. Trisha studied under Patsy Harrison Senior all her life and has worked on many baskets with her Nan as well as conducting workshops across Victoria, museum demonstrations and cross-cultural workshops.

Trisha's work has been shown at Arts Victoria's Deadly Expressions showcase in 2004, Tribal Expressions 2006 and Selling Yarns II and Walker Gallery in Dandenong in 2009. Baskets she has worked on with her grandmother are in the collections of Melbourne Museum and Koorie Heritage Trust and her own work is also in the collection of the Koorie Heritage Trust.

Trisha has continually looked to extend her practice by participating in exchanges with women from Maningrida in 2003 through the Melbourne Museum; the Koorie Heritage Trust's Master Class, the Selling Yarns II Sister Basket Workshop and The Long Walk's Indigenous Cultural Exchange with Wadeye Palngun Wurnangat in 2009.

One of Trisha's most prized possessions is a photo of Patricia Harrison Senior's grandmother Eliza O'Rooke. The photo is from the time when missionaries were encouraging basket weaving for sales to tourists at Lake Tyers and shows Eliza holding a dillybag and basket that she made with the south eastern stitch.

Kylie Belling

Kylie is a Yorta Yorta/Wiradjurri woman born and raised in Melbourne.

She is a qualified secondary school teacher as well as a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts School of Drama. Kylie has been actively involved with the Victorian Indigenous community for much of her adult life, working for a number of peak state-wide Koori community and government organisations in the fields of education, health, arts and culture, and now justice where she is currently a Project Officer for the Indigenous Issues Unit of the Department of Justice.

Kylie is an accomplished Actor and entertainer, having performed in numerous film, television and theatre productions in a career spanning over 20 years. She was a co-founder and Artistic Director of Ilbijerri Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Theatre Co-operative and is a Deadly Award for Outstanding Achievement in Literature; a Koori Women Mean Business Arts Award and Sidney Myer Performing Arts Indigenous Individual Award recipient. She sites her greatest production achievement as her seventeen year old daughter Sofii Claire Domini Yolka Belling-Harding.

Performance

Christine Ward

Christine Ward is an Indigenous performing artist, based in Ballarat, Victoria. She released her first EP CD, "Nirnoma Munera", (with Yorta Yorta man, Jack Walker), in 1998, which was funded by the Emerging Indigenous Artists Award through Aboriginal Affairs Victoria. In 1999, Christine recorded her first solo CD "Spirit of Our Land" assisted by Regional Arts Victoria. Both of these albums were produced by Melbourne music producer, musician and composer, Jeff Burstin (Renee Geyer, Vika & Linda Bull, producer & musician Black Sorrows & Jo Jo Zep & The Falcons)..

Christine, a Bunjalung- Dhungutti woman, from New South Wales, also participated in the 1999 Melbourne Songlines Aboriginal Music Corporation Music Mentorship Program. She was mentored by former Goanna singer and song-writer, Rose Bygrave and recorded the single "Spirit of Our Land" for the "Making Tracks" compilation CD. In 2000, Grant Hansen, CEO of Songlines, became her mentor on the follow-up Songlines album "Share-in Music", recording the track "When You Were Mine". In 2006, Christine was awarded the City of Melbourne's Regional Indigenous Artist's Award, which enabled her to be mentored by a number of artists including :- Jeff Burstin, Bruce Haymes, Craig Horne, Stephen Cummings, Natty Wailer, Nick Barker and Frank Jones. She then went on to collaborate with these musicians to produce her 11- track solo CD "Beauty 4 Ashes".

WOMEN'S LUNCHEON EVENT PARTNERS

INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Unable to attend? Show your support by making a donation.