INDIGENOUS Newcastle hostel manager Diane Gordon, who had a positive impact on scores of young people, was laid to rest this week.
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A funeral service for the widely respected "Aunty Di" Gordon, much-loved wife, mother and grandmother, and advocate for indigenous rights, was held on Wednesday.
Diane Gordon was born June 26, 1948, in Walgett, an Aboriginal word meaning "the meeting of two rivers", in northern NSW.
Diane's childhood was marred with the lingering effects of protection and assimilation policies that steered the lives of the large indigenous population in the town.
Ten years before her birth, in 1937, the Commonwealth government held a national conference on Aboriginal affairs, which decreed that indigenous Australians "not of full blood" should be assimilated into the wider population.
Protection and assimilation policies included separate education for indigenous children as well as curfews, alcohol bans, no social security, lower wages and laws that segregated indigenous people into separate areas, mainly on special reserves either outside towns or in remote areas.
Diane grew up in a tin shed on the river bank, a single child raised by her mother, Jean, who was of Gamilaraay heritage.
Diane's father left the family early on, and was largely not spoken of.
She inherited her mother's gentle, soft-spoken temperament, quietly navigating her way through her early life with a spotted education that would set the tone for her passion in later life.
Diane was just 17 years old when she met Ron, of Barkangee heritage, who was five years her senior.
Ron was immediately taken with Diane's grace, and requested permission to marry her shortly after.
Diane's mother, protective of her only child and wary of the age difference, initially declined his request.
A treasured family tale, Ron left the home determined to prove his love for Diane. He was travelling through the outskirts of Walgett when he spotted a prickle of porcupines, a rare sight and visited Diane's home, where he presented his find.
The family, impressed with his efforts, agreed to the union and the two married shortly afterward.
The couple recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary while Diane was bed-bound with the cancer that would ultimately take her life.
Their half-century-long union was rich with love, laughter and generosity. The pair had three children - Douglas, Leanne and Ashley - and the family relocated to Newcastle in 1979.
Ashley, who later became the first player to sign with the Knights for their foundation season in 1988, recalls the culture shock his 10-year-old self and his siblings experienced when moving to Newcastle from Brewarrina, a small town an hour's drive from Walgett where the family had settled.
"The transition was difficult at first," he remembers. "We had around 95 per cent Aboriginal students at school but when we started at Cardiff High, we were the only Aboriginal people at the whole school. It was very unfamiliar and challenging. I remember speaking differently to the other kids because I had Aboriginal words throughout my English."
Retrospect has afforded Ashley the recognition of his parents' sacrifice in relocating from their home region of 30 years to the unfamiliar surrounds of Newcastle.
"It was so uncommon for an indigenous family to move away from extended network," he says. "I think it's the ultimate sacrifice to move away from their support structure, their kinship, to give us a better opportunity for education."
Truancy and non-attendance is notoriously rife throughout the community of Brewarrina, which had an average of 76 per cent attendance rate in 2011.
Ashley says he attributes much of his and his siblings' success to the move.
"Neither mum nor dad had a strong education, so they thought it was so vital to move away to give us the opportunity," he says.
"The three children are so grateful for getting that opportunity, I was able to finish university, my brother has his own building business and my sister works with the Roads and Maritime Services. I know we wouldn't have been able to achieve those things without a proper opportunity for schooling."
But Ashley said his mother instilled in him a quiet pride for his indigenous heritage that never waned.
"We were taught never to forget where you came from and to never forget your strong ties to your community and the people you're related to," he says. "That's the close-knit nature of Aboriginal families and their relatives. I think we learnt by watching and listening . . . It was just about being like Mum really."
Despite having no experience in hostel management, Diane and Ron took work at the Kirinari Aboriginal Hostel, successfully managing the hostel for more than a decade and becoming known as Aunty Di and Uncle Ron. Kirinari, which translates to "place of learning", provides boarding accommodation for indigenous boys attending high schools throughout Newcastle, including Cardiff High School and Hunter Sports High School.
The hostel had many indigenous boys through its doors who went on to achieve great success, including South Sydney's international fullback Greg Inglis, Newcastle Knights halfback Tyrone Roberts and former Newcastle Knights winger Timana Tahu, who played for the Kangaroos and Wallabies.
"I think Mum had a burning passion for Aboriginal people to reach their potential, particularly by focusing on their education," Ashley says.
Diane and Ron decided to move to the adult hostel Durungarling, which has formed strong ties with the University of Newcastle, as the hostel focused the intake on students from the university.
But Diane's role as manager at Kirinari and Durungarling also became a role as mother and mentor, as she provided care and support for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students who chose to study at the university.
One such former student is Lieutenant Beimop "BJ" Tapim, from Mer Island in the Torres Strait.
He met Diane in 2005, one year into his bachelor of medicine degree at the university.
"She was like a mother and a best friend to me, and I think she was like that to many indigenous youth who passed through the hostels," he says. "I would say she was first and foremost passionate about her family, so proud of her family's achievements, but also proud of all the students who are now indigenous doctors, lawyers, nurses . . .
"Aunty Di and Uncle Ron knew the importance of education. They made it their duty to make [sure] all the other bits and pieces in life are sorted out so when you came to the uni, you could just worry about the books. That was her first priority."
Diane also dedicated her time as a foundation member of the Yarnteen Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation and a member of the Awabakal Newcastle Aboriginal Co-operative for more than 30 years.
Diane worked for 36 years with children and adults from an indigenous background, with an unrelenting passion for education given wings by her inherent care, love and support for others. Diane was 66 when she died, but continued her work with indigenous students right up until the end.