Spotlight Taree will retain its NAIDOC Week window display for one week after the celebration ends as news of its existence continues to be widely shared in the community and throughout Australia.
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Store manager Adam Harker this week said the celebration window would remain until July 22.
"The community reaction has been absolutely amazing and feedback reached our head office in Melbourne before we even knew how positively it had taken off," Adam said. "Photos of the window are being shared widely around Australia."
Purfleet Local Aboriginal Land Council shared photos of the Spotlight Taree window with its Facebook community and described it as "reconciliation at its best."
"The NAIDOC committee would like to thank Spotlight Taree on their contribution and support for NAIDOC 2019. How amazing is the effort they made on their window? Reconciliation at its best."
Community Action for Indigenous Australians posted, "We get a warm feeling in our hearts when reading stories like these. Thanks for sharing and pointing out the positives in our communities."
Individuals also gave voice to their praise and the comments included Belinda Christensen who shared, "... absolutely gorgeous and such a wonderful gesture ... be nice to see more local businesses support NAIDOC week like this." Helen Ping expressed a similiar sentiment, "Love it! It's a shame more stores don't do the same."
Adam is delighted by the positive community response and said its genesis was a conversation with Taree Indigenous Development and Employment (TIDE).
"We were approached by TIDE who invited us to 'colour-in the window' with general black, red and yellow, and so we decided to talk to one of our team members who is Indigenous, Tileah Trindall, and asked her for assistance as to what we could do," Adam said.
"She made a few phone calls and Biripi Medical Centre and Open Arms Early Education Centre jumped on board and asked if we could display various artifacts and items, and so we opened the door to a little more creativity.
"Tileah was absolutely pivotal in bringing this window display together."
The large window display in Victoria Street features locally made and painted boomerangs and didgeridoos, paintings by children from Open Arms Early Education Centre and a quilt made by members of the first Aboriginal N.O.W Course at Taree TAFE in 1988; Elaine Clark, Lynette Davis, Pam Davis, Phyllis Donovan, Sandra Dumas, Paula French, Edie McDonald, Kathy Morcombe, Debbie Morris, Shirley Morris, Sandra Morris, Cathy Ping and Elsie Allan.
Adam said the display would have a "few minor touches over the next week to freshen it up and re-jig it a little."
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