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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-05-31 Daily Xml
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Kernewek Lowender

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE (15:45): Recently, I had the pleasure of joining many dignitaries at the Kernewek Lowender in Moonta in the Copper Triangle on Yorke Peninsula, including the Governor and her partner, Rod Bunten; the federal member for the area, Rowan Ramsey; the Hon. Nicola Centofanti from the chamber here today; the local mayor; and, obviously, the President of the Kernewek Lowender, Lynn Spurling.

There are many reasons why there were so many dignitaries at this event. It is a community who really are the VIPs. They have taken this community back in time to remember and reflect on why this proud history is so important to celebrate. It is a community we often refer to as a very rich and colourful tapestry, a tapestry held together by many threads that cross and recross one another, bringing the lives and stories of past and present together to create a community.

On this particular day, it was a very wet community, but I know the organisers were very keen for the show go on. The most recent Kernewek Lowender, as it has been since 1973, was literally held together by thousands of threads, even if those threads were very wet on the day, from the hand sewn threads that have created traditional clothing to the Maypole ribbons and the binding threads that hold the tapestry together—people. People like Ashley, Barbara and their family.

Ashley and Barbara have been part of the Kernewek Lowender network since Premier Don Dunstan committed $1,000 to help start the Kernewek Lowender way back in 1972. Like many in the community, they know it is not the bricks and mortar of a building that make a community. They know a community is only as good as its people. Like many, they made it their commitment to volunteer and support the very first Kernewek Lowender in 1973 and they have volunteered at every single Kernewek Lowender since.

From driving restored trucks and cars to dressing the graves, Barbara and Ashley have watched the festival grow from strength to strength, but there was one Kernewek Lowender that stands out. Some 40 years ago, Barbara decided it was time to sew a Kernewek Lowender outfit for her daughter with all the frills, and of course the finishing touch was included, a white apron. The threads she wove together achieved something that surprised both her 12-year-old daughter Sandra and probably most onlookers.

Sandra, at the age of 12, was crowned May Queen, making her the youngest ever May Queen to be crowned. To become the ambassador of the Kernewek Lowender at age 12 is a big commitment and on reflection Sandra mentioned that it was a little strange to be attending meetings late at night as a 12 year old. But the meetings must not have deterred Sandra too much, she went on to become the treasurer of the Kernewek Lowender and would bring her four-month-old Chloe along to these meetings.

The most recent Kernewek Lowender was a particularly special and proud day for this family who, like many in the Copper Coast, have made it their way of life to help where they can, to look after the stories and traditions of the Kernewek Lowender so they can continue for generations to come. On this particular day at the Kernewek Lowender, Chloe, who at just four months had been going to meetings most of her life, followed in her mum's footsteps in becoming the May Queen.

There is no questioning how proud Ashley, Barbara and Sandra are of their granddaughter and daughter. They know Chloe's passion for working with children through swimming lessons and her studies to be a teacher will encourage younger generations to aspire to become the next May Queen. There is one thing they can all agree on: being May Queen at age 22 is probably a much better idea than being May Queen at age 12.

Today, the decades of volunteering and the decades of stories of Ashley, Barbara, Sandra, Chloe and the many who join them in giving their time have helped weave a rich tapestry, but it is far from finished. There are many threads that must still be woven by future generations. I congratulate the many local schools who ensure this tapestry continues to grow, ensuring the stories live on. We were there, and saw that school uniforms have been replaced with traditional clothing, and their classroom became the outdoors, even though it was a very wet classroom.

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