He grew up as an Indigenous boy in an environment that had little understanding of the First Australians’ connection to the land they had inhabited for thousands of years.
The affable father of three boys is now a school Koori engagement support officer and continues to be amazed by just how far the nation has come in its knowledge of Australia’s Indigenous people.
KESOs support Koori children and their families making the journey through primary and secondary school, assisting the educators in building their capacity to better engage with students and their families.
Last week at Rochester Primary School, Mr Cowley teamed up with Parks Victoria cultural officer Greta Morgan, Indigenous leader Neva Takele (formerly Atkinson) and fellow KESO Paul Clark to deliver a cultural day program.
“It is impossible to compare when I was going through school to today,” Mr Cowley said.
“It is like chalk and cheese. The knowledge and insight kids today have into Indigenous history is astounding and continues to amaze me.”
Club colours: Both Lockington and Elmore footballers and netballers have played in Neva Takele (formerly Atkinson) designs during the Heathcote league’s Indigenous round.
The past two weeks, in particular, have seen headlines dominated by annual Indigenous recognition — through National Sorry Day on May 26, followed by Reconciliation Week (May 27 to June 3) — all while the AFL’s Sir Doug Nicholls Round starred on the national sporting stage.
NAIDOC Week is from July 2 to 9, and this year the theme is ‘For Our Elders’.
Rochester Primary School’s cultural day used art and craft, along with game play and group discussions, to further explain the history of First Nations people in Australia.
Yellow and black: This is a design Neva Takele offered to Rochester Football Club for its Indigenous round matches against Kyabram and Shepparton on July 8 and 15. A design has not been unveiled for the Tigers’ matches yet. The front of this design is of a flying fruit bat, while the back has emu footprints, pelicans and turtles. It also shows the rivers and creeks of the region, along with hunters and warriors from Indigenous Australia.
“Schools are very culturally aware places, very different to what they were when I was at school,” Mr Cowley said.
“We are working our way around the schools to deliver the cultural days.”
Mr Cowley is responsible for Tongala, Stanhope, Girgarre, Rushworth, Colinabbin, Nanneella and all points in between at primary, secondary and pre-school level.
There are seven different activities that make up the full-day program, which culminates with students taking away artwork and a gumnut-emu feather necklace as a memento of the occasion.
“The kids love the games and they all relate back to the Indigenous heritage of Australia,” Mr Cowley said.
“It is a 50-50 split of fun and information delivery on what Indigenous people have done through more than 1000 years.”
Among the games was pedetti, which imitates throwing a spear or a boomerang.
“We explain it as what a supermarket would be like 1000 years ago,” Mr Cowley said.
Battendi and jaluhya (which was an adaption of a game that originally involved Indigenous children rolling pebbles down long sheets of bark) were other games played, alongside the Torres Strait throwing game of diyari koolchee (similar to skittles).
Ms Takele instructed the students in emu feather-gumnut necklace-making, used traditionally for ceremonies, encouraging the students to wear them to any cultural events.
She has been a celebrated artist through a variety of work and her art will be on show during the June and July Indigenous rounds of district football and netball leagues.
She has completed the jumper designs for Heathcote league clubs Elmore, Leitchville-Gunbower and Lockington-Bamawm United, along with Murray league teams Echuca United and Moama, to wear during their Indigenous rounds.
“Kyabram was the first one I ever did, but I am yet to have Rochester play in one of my designs,” she said.
Clubs use the jumpers regularly. In fact, Echuca United wears its Indigenous jumper eight times a year.
The Goulburn Valley League’s Indigenous rounds are on July 8 and 15 (rounds 12 and 13).
Teamwork: Using plastic piping and tennis balls, instead of marbles and bark, the Rochester Primary School students performed a version of the Indigenous game jaluhya. It was one of seven activities for students during the cultural day last week.
Indigenous art: Faith Fitzgerald and Rylie Town use “earth’’ colours during an art session as part of the Rochester Primary School cultural day last week.
History lesson: Corey Moroney and Jordi Howe were involved in the outdoor games that showed the students how Indigenous Australians hunted for animals and how children entertained themselves in a long-gone era.