Sos Hawkins and Dolly Saunders cooking traditional Jonny cakes. Photos by RGA Landcare.
Community members of all ages came together at The Cape on the Billabong Creek for a Jeithi-led planting event last month, celebrating caring for Country, shared knowledge, and community connection.
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Twenty-seven people attended the event, representing landholders, community members, and the Jeithi Jerilderie Aboriginal Group.
Representatives worked side by side to plant tube stock grown by Sos Hawkins, who generously raised the seedlings herself.
Despite the ground being hard and dry after prolonged dry conditions, the group persevered, digging holes, planting, and watering together.
While the site will require follow-up watering to ensure the plants establish, the collective effort demonstrated strong commitment to looking after The Cape.
Ms Hawkins said the day was about more than planting trees,
“Growing these plants myself and then being able to plant them on Country with the community is really special,” she said.
“It’s about sharing responsibility for this place and passing on care for the land to the next generation.”
The planting was accompanied by cultural knowledge sharing, with Andrea Mitchell from RGA Landcare speaking about First Nations uses of native plants, particularly the quandong, emu bush, and butter bush, and their importance for food, medicine, and culture,
“These plants are part of living knowledge systems that have sustained people for thousands of years,” Ms Mitchell said.
“When we plant them, we’re restoring the environment and restoring understanding to why these species matter.”
As the sun dropped, the group gathered around a campfire where Ms Hawkins and Dolly Saunders cooked traditional Johnny cakes over the coals, alongside sausages cooked on a wire rack.
The evening finished with bellies full, volunteering spirits alive, and new knowledge acquired.
The event was a reminder of what can be achieved when people come together across generations to care for Country.
