Patricia Ellis has devoted her life to teaching Aboriginal language and culture. Not only helping Indigenous Australians reconnect to their heritage, but also teaching non- Indigenous people ways to develop a deeper connection to Country and a genuine respect for the oldest culture on earth.
For Aunty Trish, as she’s often respectfully referred to, teaching culture and language is about uniting Indigenous people, empowering them to connect with traditions that have been lost since colonisation. After 30 years working in Aboriginal-identified roles for government, schools, TAFEs and the private sector, she established Minga Aboriginal Cultural Services in 2017 to respectfully share the rich diversity of Indigenous culture and heritage.
As well as running tours, she hosts workshops in bushfoods and medicines, Dreamtime stories, fire making, cultural awareness, smoking ceremonies, tool making, as well as wood, grass, stone and shell technology. Her sessions are primarily for Indigenous people to come together and relearn culture, but she also includes those closely related to or working with Indigenous people, as well as making them available to non-Indigenous people.