A new community-led Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Centre, ‘Cooinda’, has officially opened in Brimbank.
Brimbank council has joined with Cooinda Community Group to provide a culturally safe and welcoming space that offers programs for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Brimbank.
Brimbank mayor Bruce Lancashire said council is delighted to have a place where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in Brimbank can connect on a regular basis.
“Cooinda is an Aboriginal word meaning ‘Happy Place’ and this is indeed the intention,” he said.
The dedicated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Centre is the first of its kind in Brimbank.
The centre will be led by members of the local Aboriginal community, the Cooinda Community Group.
Located in Furlong Road, Sunshine North, Cooinda is a place where communities can come together to connect with each other and enhance reconciliation, healing and wellbeing.
Cooinda is currently operating three days a week, offering a Koorie Homework Club, Elders’ group, art classes and yarning circles.
Over time the centre will provide a diverse range of programs, events and activities to the whole of Brimbank.
The centre is supported by $184,000 in funding from the state government for council to work in partnership with the local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
The funding will be delivered over two years under the Neighbourhood House Coordination Program.
Cr Lancashire said the funding has assisted council to work alongside Aboriginal Elders and community leaders to provide a much-needed welcoming space for programs and activities.
Cooinda Community Group spokesperson and Aboriginal Elder Graham Cooper (Uncle Boots) also offered his thanks.
“We’re enjoying having a meeting place where the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community can connect, heal and learn from each other and for the Elders to pass on knowledge,” he said.
