State memorial to honour Rev Dr Gondarra OAM

A service will take place this Thursday at Nungalinya College in Darwin to honour the trailblazing Yolŋu elder who died in June

August 27, 2024

A state memorial will be held this week for Rev Dr Gondarra OAM, senior Yolŋu lawman, pioneering Aboriginal leader and Uniting Church minister, who died in June.

Rev Dr Gondarra was instrumental in the founding of the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress and provided visionary leadership to Congress, the Uniting Church and the global church for over four decades.

The service will take place at 11am ACST, this Thursday 29 August at Nungalinya College in Darwin (11:30am AEST, 9:30am AWST). It will be live streamed.

Flags will be flown at half mast in the Northern Territory that day.

The Uniting Church will be well represented by many of our leaders. National Chairperson of the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress Rev Mark Kickett, and General Secretary of the Northern Synod Rev Janet Staines, will both attend in an official capacity. Rev Kickett will speak on behalf of the Uniting Church in Australia.

Rev Steve Orme, past Moderator of the Northern Synod Rev Thresi Mauboy and past President Stuart McMillan will all play a role in the service. Ex-President Rev Sharon Hollis will attend on behalf of Uniting Church President Rev Charissa Suli, and Frontier Services National Director Rob Floyd will attend on behalf of General Secretary (Interim) Rev Lindsay Cullen.

The service will begin with a welcome to country and buŋgul (Yolŋu ceremony). Tributes will include addresses from the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory and the Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation, which Rev Dr Gondarra chaired for more than 30 years.

We invite people across the Uniting Church to consider joining the service online as we honour the far-reaching legacy of Rev Dr Gondarra, a giant in the life of our Church and nation.

live stream link here

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