Reunion Story: Allan Simmons
I want to acknowledge and pay respect to all First Nations people, languages and regional clans, past present and future. Personally for my family the Bundjalung Nation, Yugambeh language and Mununjali clan.
I have been blankly staring at my computer screen trying to think of how best to put into words what has been a life changing experience. The experience has and will continue to impact me personally at a relational, emotional, spiritual, psychological, educational and professional level. Hopefully my feelings are expressed here with the same respect, privilege and responsibility I have felt since this process began.
I was born in 1973 in Brisbane. My father was born in 1926 in Melbourne and my mother 1932 in Gympie. Due to circumstances and age, I had almost no relationship or meaningful knowledge about my father’s family in Melbourne. Information regarding my mother’s family was limited and at times impossible to obtain as she was placed into care at a very early age and eventually formally adopted. I remember going with my mother to try and obtain her pre-adoption birth certificate and the person saying the file was stamped never to be released. Somehow my mother reconnected with her mother in her adult years, and I do have some memories of time spent with her, although I was quite young. What I can say is that my grandmother’s name before marriage was Alice French and my mother is Joan Simmons. The only other information I had was that she was an Aboriginal women with a possible link to Beaudesert. Fast forward to 2019 with both my parents having passed away, the extent of any family connection was zero and I felt that I was on my own in the world which I came to terms with. All that drastically changed on the morning of 21st September 2021 when Link-Up (Qld)’s Anne Garrett and Alison Bell walked through my door.
“The detailed and lengthy research done by Link-Up (Qld) left me lost for words, which continued to be a common response over this journey.” – Allan Simmons, Link-Up (Qld) client
Thankfully Link-Up (Qld) recognised the importance of relationships and allowed Anne Garrett and Alison Bell to walk with me on my reunion. I was also provided the opportunity to have a support person join and I immediately asked someone very important to me, Jahmayne Coolwell. I am pleased to share that Jahmayne and his family share the same connections as I do to the Bundjalung Nation and Mununjali Clan, through marriage and Lore. It must be said that at times I felt that the four of us were not alone in the journey and others were looking over us all.
I want to acknowledge and promote the importance of The Yugambeh Museum, Language and Heritage Research Centre in Beenleigh. This centre is the gateway for connecting families, preserving our culture and the provision of education and awareness of the Bundjalung Nation, Yugambeh language and the rich collection of local clans. I feel privileged that at the centre I was introduced to my great grandmother’s brother’s son Uncle Ted Williams. Although I was struggling with my words, it was wonderful to listen to him speak of other family members and how I, through Alice, am forever linked. Uncle Ted is full of great knowledge and must be respectfully acknowledged for all the work and support he has provided. The other person that graciously gave up time to spend time with us was Shaun Davies. Another speechless moment began and continued when I first met Shaun. I have never met a person with the ability to mentally connect people together through various family lines and generations almost instantly. Shaun’s knowledge of language, family and Dreamtime stories left me in great admiration of his dedication and knowledge. Due the vast amount of important information I received, I left with a variety of emotions, happiness, gratefulness, confusion, excitement and pride to name a few.
That afternoon we arrived at Burleigh Heads and checked into our hotel. Following a walk with Jahmayne, we met for dinner with Anne and Alison where they both led a discussion which enabled us to reflect and breakdown the information and experience of our time at the Yugambeh Centre. This proved to be extremely helpful and became a regular part of the breakfast and dinner routine.
Day 2 found us arriving at the Jellurgal Aboriginal Cultural Centre where we began with an important short film followed by a walking tour. The walk was led by a proud Bundjalung women named Trish who grew up in the area and has significant historical and cultural knowledge passed down through local Elders. The tour not only educated me on how long the Tallebudgera and Burleigh Point areas have been inhabited for, the Dreamtime stories, respect for animals and environment, traditional gender roles and the hunting skills and tools highlighted the complex cultural and family lives dating back over 4000 years.
Above: Allan and Jahmayne at the Bora Ring at Jebbribillum Bora Park which also contains the Yugembeh Aboriginal War Memorial
Following a late lunch, group discussion and debrief, we were off to Kooralbyn. During our time at the Yugambeh Centre on the first day, out of the blue a thought came to mind about where my grandmother Alice would go on holiday each year. Due to my very young age at the time and passing of time, I am reasonably certain that Alice regularly returned to Kooralbyn. On checking in to our hotel, I inquired about the history of the hotel and area. I feel that by chance or not we were staying in the exact hotel that my grandmother stayed in the early 1980’s.
The final day was structured in a way that we spent time at significant locations in Beaudesert, Kooralbyn and Tamrookum, with room to visit a lookout where we could really take in the landscape and follow Knappy Creek which is another significant location. Tamrookum is an area outside Beaudesert but was also the name of the pastoral station of great importance to the Williams family story. We visited the Williams family memorial followed by a trip up the road to the church and gravesite. The time spent in Tamrookum really brought everything I had learned over the previous 2 days together and important to me personally, the contribution of the Williams family.
The phrase life changing is thrown about regularly these days, although I cannot think of any other phrase to explain what Link-Up (Qld) has done for me. One day I was alone in the world and the next I am connected to a family with a rich and beautiful historical and cultural connection to the land and each other.
All my life I have felt alone and with little direction and have only dreamt of everything that Link-Up (Qld) has given me. I only wish that this information was available when my mother Joan was alive, because it would have changed her life as well as mine.
Allan Simmons
Published December 2021.