Employment Office has begun a recruitment first by sourcing an Indigenous Elder to offer young mothers wise words in the township of Cunnamulla.

The Indigenous Elder will be required to visit families and young mothers to offer support and guidance during pregnancy and beyond.

The need for this unique position was identified by the Chief Executive Officer of Cunnamulla Aboriginal Corporation for Health, Ann-Marie Thomas.

Ms Thomas is driven by personal experience, having had her first child at 17 years of age, she struggled to support her new family of two, while working as a full-time waitress in Toowoomba.

“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” she said. “I had no idea what was involved. I would live on four hours sleep and push my son home from work at 10’o clock at night, it was just so hard”.

“But if I had someone, an Aboriginal woman who I could trust to sit with me and help with my baby, just while I got an hour sleep during the day, or simply to explain that this was a normal part of raising a child, it would have made a huge difference”.

Ms Thomas left her home town to receive an education and returned to Cunnamulla as Registered Nurse, armed with knowledge and committed to supporting the community through health initiatives.

“Statistically, Aboriginal girls will birth at a very young age and that has always had a negative presence in the media, but we have to realistic” she said.

“There are currently more than 20 pregnant women in the community, and most of our Indigenous girls are 15, 16, and 17 upwards. Our job is not to judge them; we simply want someone who will let young mothers know they’re not alone”.

In addition to guiding first-time mothers, the Indigenous Elder will provide ante-natal classes, work with schools to address educational gaps, and play a vital role in strengthening community ties to traditional cultural values.

“As kids, we learnt through stories and we want to get that back” said Ms Thomas. “This role is going to offer stories to young mothers about raising their children”.

“We’ve got elders in the community who have had ten children and don’t even look like they’re stressed out, it’s amazing. This role is going to be crucial in encouraging that culture of strong black women”.

Employment Office is working closely with Cunnamulla Aboriginal Corporation for Health to find a talented and committed candidate, brimming with life experience.

The recruitment marketing specialist has high hopes having been successful in filling roles for an array of community organisations throughout Australia, ranging from Aboriginal Health Workers in the Northern Tip to General Practitioners in the Western outback.

Managing Director Tudor Marsden-Huggins says it is important to understand the difference between corporate recruitment and recruiting within the community.

“This is about strengthening organisations that have previously struggled to find and attract the best candidates,” he said.

“Regional community organisations are seeking individuals with a rare skill set and unique experiences, and simply placing ads in the usual places is not going to cut it”.

“We’re focused on getting to grips with what these community organisations need and really honing in on the right candidate pool. Our clients are suddenly finding that there are strong candidates around, it just takes a little digging to uncover what these organisations need”.

Cunnamulla Aboriginal Corporation for Health will be travelling to Brisbane in August having been nominated for the Healthy Queensland Award, which offers the winner $1,000,000 to assist with future programs.

Ms Thomas’s son is now 22 and is currently training as an Aboriginal Health Worker in Cunnamulla.