Central Queensland Indigenous Development Ltd (CQID) held a smoking ceremony and blessing of land on the weekend ahead of construction of its Community Enterprise Inclusion Centre (CEIC) at CQUniversity Rockhampton, across from the baseball diamond...

The event featured an address by CQUniversity Vice-Chancellor Professor Scott Bowman, children's activities and a barbecue lunch.

Mattius Mann was one of the Aboriginal dancers who took part in the ceremony on the weekend.The launch of the centre was a great success, according to General Manager of CQID Jason Field, who thanked Wade Mann, Lester Adams and Pastor Barry Mann for their warm welcome and blessing of the development of the Centre.

"The Centre signifies opportunity and convenience for Indigenous Australians, assisting with the current Government policy of closing the Gap," Mr Field explained.

"I must acknowledge also CQUniversity for the opportunity to build this facility within their precinct. This will create further opportunity for all Indigenous Australians to undergo further education, allowing Indigenous Australians the skills to become leaders and role models within their communities."

He also congratulated and thanked Professor Bowman and University staff for their continued support and drive to ensure the facility was approved and completed on time.

Pastor Barry Mann lead the smoking ceremony that took place on University grounds on the weekend.

The facility is due to be completed by June 30, 2011.

LINK here for background on the project 

 
The launch of the Community Enterprise Inclusion Centre.

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