Hundreds of mourners came together at the Ulumbarra Theatre in Bendigo on Wednesday to celebrate the life of the proud Yorta Yorta and Dja Dja Wurrung woman who died at 89.
Her family moved to the Cummeragunja Mission in NSW before leaving in protest over mismanagement before settling in flats on the Goulburn River near Shepparton along with other families who had left the mission.
“Mother, if the community is your children, you’ve done so much to nurture them.”
Grandchildren of Aunty Fay Carter speak during the State Funeral Service for Aunty Fay Carter at Ulumbarra Theatre in Bendigo, Victoria. Source: AAP / Joel Carrett/AAP Image
Aunty Fay’s nephew Trent Nelson described her as someone who brought people together and sparked connection between families.
“That’s the gift that she gave so many people,” he said.
Those stories that make you straighten your spine, that make you lift up your head, and puff out your chest, because every story of Aunty Fay is one of those stories.
Aunty Fay was also a founding member of Australia’s first Aboriginal women’s refuge in the 1970s and helped introduce landmark reforms across aged care, childcare and health services, including founding several major welfare programs.
“Children like Aunty Fay were taught that they weren’t enough, that they would never be enough, that their story would be written for them, but as we now know, that could not have been further from the truth,” Ms Allan said.
Mourners gather around the coffin of Aunty Fay Carter at the state funeral in Bendigo, Victoria. Credit: Joel/Carrett/AAP Image
She fought alongside many others for what she believed in, including the 2013 recognition of the Dja Dja Wurrung as the Traditional Owners of the lands in Central Victoria which preserved language and culture.
She was inducted into the Victorian Aboriginal Honour Roll in 2013 and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 2019.