Reconciliation was on the agenda at Gummingurru for National Reconciliation Week. First Nations, local community, and avid gardeners came together for a round of truth telling and tree planting.

Located north of Toowoomba, Gummingurru is an ancient and sacred site for Western Wakka Wakka Peoples, serving as a stopping point for First Nations Peoples on their way to the Bunya Mountains.

Western Wakka Wakka man Shannon Bauwens, a First Nations man from the Bunya Peoples’ Aboriginal Corporation (BPAC) led the event with a smoking ceremony and a round of truth-telling at the yarning circle near Gummingurru.

“Reconciliation is about talking to each other. Coming together and making something positive as a community,” Shannon Bauwens said.

“This yarning circle we are standing in now represents thousands of years of storytelling,” Mr Bauwens said.

“Today is all about sharing our stories and finding new ways to come together as a community; whether you are Indigenous or not,” he said.

“We have people from all different Nations, from Western Wakka Wakka, to Bunjalung, Gomeroi, and more.”

“Reconciliation is about talking to each other. Coming together and making something positive as a community,” Shannon Bauwens said.

Reconciliation was on the agenda at Gummingurru for National Reconciliation Week. First Nations, local community members, and avid gardeners came together for a round of truth telling and tree planting.

Located northwest of Toowoomba, Gummingurru is an ancient and sacred site for not only the traditional owners, but for many First Nations Peoples serving as a ceremonial staging ground on their way to the gatherings in the Bunya Mountains.

Shannon Bauwens, a First Nations man from the Bunya Peoples’ Aboriginal Corporation (BPAC) led the event with a smoking ceremony and a round of truth-telling at the yarning circle near Gummingurru.

“Reconciliation is about talking to each other. Coming together and making something positive as a community,” Shannon Bauwens said.

“This place we are standing in now has thousands of years of history and has always been a place of imparting traditional knowledge and cultural observance, where K’gippa (the initiates) would go through their rites of passage on their journey into manhood,” Mr Bauwens said.

“Today is all about sharing our stories and finding new ways to come together as a community; whether you are Indigenous or not, as this celebrates and honours the traditions of this place; coming together and sharing” he said.

“We have representatives from many different Nations with us today, just as it was in the old days.”

“Gummingurru represents reconciliation in ways very few sites today can.” Shannon Bauwens said.

Gummingurru represents a significant cultural and spiritual site in First Nations history and highlights the interconnectedness that First Nations Peoples had.

“In the old days, you had thousands of people traveling vast distances, some hundreds of kilometres, to visit the Bunya Mountains and partake in the Bunya Nut Festival; thought to be the largest known gatherings in pre-colonial Australia,” Shannon Bauwens said.

“Gummingurru was one of these staging points and also served as an initiation site for young men,” Mr Bauwens said.

“This site is estimated to be around 4000 to 6000 years old and was used until the late 1800’s before First Nations Peoples were forcibly removed from their tribal lands and relocated to missions such as Taroom, Purga, Cherbourg, and Palm Island,” he said.

“They were then were forbidden to practice our customs, speak our language or even function as normal families, due to the segregation in these institutions.”



“Toowoomba is full of avid gardeners, so we had lots of people who even brought in their own shovels, trowels, and just started planting!” Mr Reid said.

“Gummingurru is now under the First Nations stewardship once again, thanks to relationships our ancestors had with some of settlers in the region,” Shannon Bauwens said.

“Gummingurru represents reconciliation in ways very few sites today can.” Mr Bauwens said.

“The property where the bora ground lies was selected by Alfred and Jane Walker in 1882. It was they who saw the Aboriginals using the bora ground, and were of the belief, “to let them be, as so much had already been taken from them already” which was a very enlightened position at the time,” he said.

“Ben Gilbert, purchased the property from Jane Walker in 1948. After hearing reports of stone circles from Errol Beutel, who collected stone artifacts in the area, and from Ben's young daughter who had been playing in the “Fairy Rings”, Ben decided to investigate further,” said Jean Gundry, Ben Gilbert’s daughter who attended the event.

“In 1960 the Queensland Museum confirmed the existence of significant initiation grounds and the site was mapped and properly recorded by the Queensland Museum. Ben then took care of the site until the hand-over in 2000,” Mrs Gundry said.

The bora ground was returned to First Nations People 2000 and was named Gummingurru by the elders meaning “man of the river”, referring to the southern extent of the Wakka Wakka Language, the Condamine River,” Shannon Bauwens said.

“The site is under the direct custodianship of the Gummingurru Aboriginal Corporation. Unlike other Indigenous sites, it was the care of non-Indigenous people like Ben that ensured the site’s original condition was maintained,” Mr Bauwens said.

“That’s why Gummingurru is such a special place for reconciliation because it proves that we can all work together and that we can move forward as a nation towards reconciliation,” he said.

Following the yarning, guests took part in planting over 200 trees from three different native ecosystems including rainforest, semi-evergreen vine thicket, and open woodland species.

Led by SQ Landscapes’ Toowoomba-based Regional Agricultural Landcare Facilitator and Gomeroi man Geoff Reid, the guests were supported every step of the way through the event.

The Toowoomba team assisted in coordinating with guests on planting, signing in guests as they arrived, and providing logistical support to BPAC and the Gummingurru Aboriginal Corporation in running and promoting the event.

“It was an energetic day. Everyone really soaked in the yarning and truth-telling and then when it came to planting, folks rolled up their sleeves and got into it,” Regional Agricultural Landcare Facilitator Geoff Reid said.

“Toowoomba is full of avid gardeners, so we had lots of people who even brought in their own shovels, trowels, and just started planting!” Mr Reid said.

“It’s not often that you see communities so eager to do things together like this and it really sang home that today was about coming together, reconciling over the past, and building something new and positive for the future,” he said.

“We had over 70 people come to this event from all walks of life to participate and without that whole community involvement, this event wouldn’t have been possible.”

This project was funded under the Queensland Government’s Celebrating Reconciliation Grants program.