Indigenous Community Volunteers

From Buildings to Bridges The Wongutha Birni Aboriginal Cultural Centre

“We don't accomplish anything in this world alone ... and whatever happens is the result of the whole tapestry of one's life and all the weavings of individual threads from one to another that creates something.” Sandra Day O’connor

The restoration of the Old Railway Superintendent’s House in Kalgoorlie is more than another ‘renovation rescue’ story. Through the united efforts of volunteers, a once neglected and decaying building has now become a hive of activity that is transforming a community.

Indigenous Community Volunteers (ICV) assisted the initiative by providing a project supervisor, Henk Mulder, a master craftsman in heritage building. What came next was a brilliant demonstration of collaboration in its truest sense. For 4 months the efforts of many transformed an old ruin with a long list of restoration problems into what it is today. Those involved included local volunteers, members of the Mission Employment Work for the Dole program, prisoners from the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison, urban land care groups and local businesses to name a few.

Today, the Centre is a meeting place and work area for Aboriginal people, a safe storage for artist’s materials, a museum for the sale of art by local artists and a venue for artists in residence. The Centre has provided a unique place to foster a sense of pride in the Aboriginal community and is keeping the community culture alive by acting as a museum for artefacts, stories and information regarding Aboriginal history, culture and tradition. The involvement of a wide range of members of the community has provided all with a sense of ownership and pride. While for volunteers like Henk, a Dutch Australian, the experience has been nothing short of “a reconciliation experience and a life changing event”.

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