Please make ensure you visit and spend time in our Goorie Bush Foods and Medicine Garden.  

 

The Cultural benefits of our Goorie bush foods and bush medicine garden include:

• Strengthens the cultural identity of Goorie and Torres Strait Islander children and families;

• Keeps children, families and the community connected to Country and culture;

• Strengthens the spiritual DNA of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children;

• Builds share understanding of all children towards traditional Goorie ecological knowledge;

• Learn Goorie Lore’s including the lore’s of sustainability and wellness;

• Supports the significances of Caring for Country;

• Early introduction to Goorie knowledge systems such as Environmental science and education;

 

The benefits of our Goorie bush foods and bush medicine garden to Our families and community include:

• Being a culturally safe space and cultural and educational sanctuary for Goorie and Torres Strait Islander families and community;

• Becomes a healing and cultural gathering place for families and community;

• Builds Unity in our Community;

 

We want our children to experience bush tucker and medicine straight from the vine.

 

Gundala would like to acknowledge the collective commitment of the Quandamooka and Aboriginal families and community who were involved in creating the Goorie Bush Foods and Medicine Garden. 

• The design of the garden was inspired by Quandamooka artist Shara Delaney who did an art workshop with the Gundala children in 2018.  

• The landscaping and plant selection were done by Aunty Judy Watego Quandamooka Senior Elder and Gundala Life Member, Uncle Alan Perry and Uncle Norm Enoch Quandamooka Elder from Stradbroke Island from Minjerribah Moorgumpin Elders-in-Council, and Wendy Watego Ittensohn Quandamooka and association member and past President.  

• The construction of the garden was project managed by past parent married to Quandamooka women Ken Ittensohn, his son Lawson, and school work experience student Tait.  Together they turned the garden plans on paper into a cultural and educational sanctuary within 4 weeks.  

• The Watego, Gilsenan, and Thomson families who showed up to working bees and didn’t stop until the all the messy work was done.  On one working bee there were 3 generations all of who were past Gundala students, parents, Management Committee members and staff.

• This was a true demonstration of Gundala’s strategic intentions:  Community is Unity, Cultural Compass, Intergenerational Success and Educational Excellence.  Our Goorie bush Foods and Bush Medicine Garden is what can be produced when you authentically   and meaningfully work alongside Goorie and Torres Strait Islander families.

 

We also had a little help from a collection of local community Business:

• Bunnings Manly West for donations of man power, paint and plants.  

• Wynnum Men’s Shed for painting the garden signs and engraving the garden pavers which created our sacred path of Acknowledgement;

• Ibrox Parl Nursery, Nursery Traders and Sunnydene Nursery who sold plants to use whole sale (including a few freebies) thanks to Ken’s business partnership with them;

• Brisbane City Council for their contribution of 50 

• Market Place bargains plants, rocks, 

 

We had a little help from a collection of local community Business:

• Bunnings Manly West for donations of man power, paint and plants.  

• Wynnum Men’s Shed for painting the garden signs and engraving the garden pavers which created our sacred path of Acknowledgement;

• Ibrox Nursery, Nursery Traders and Sunnydene Nursery who sold plants to us whole sale (including a few freebies) thanks to Ken’s business associations.

• Brisbane City Council for donating 50 free small plants

• Market Place bargains plants, rocks,