Cowra’s councillors have voted unanimously to reduce the cost of creating and placing headstones on unmarked graves, as part of a TAFE course encouraged to promote working opportunities in the community.
Councillors voted at a general committee meeting on March 10 to waive fees, estimated at about $985.60 per site, to establish headstones on previously unmarked graves.
“It costs about $1,600 less to bury someone in the monumental part of the cemetery, and a lot of the times because of the cost, [families] don't have means then to put the monument on so they might be marked by a cross or another marker that doesn't stand the test of time,” councillor Cheryl Downing said when recommending the motion to council.
“In my experience, a lot of them are Indigenous families. This is a great training thing for our Indigenous students, but also for giving dignity for their families.
“You get better outcomes when [programs are] actually designed by the people that are using it.”
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The TAFE NSW program was run with the support of Cowra Local Aboriginal Land Council, supporting about thirteen students undertaking a Statement of Attainment in Concreting (Headstones).
The motion was seconded by clr Tony Horton.
“Marking some unmarked graves is a terrific thing to be able to do … it’s an absolutely valuable thing to support,” he said.
Mayor Paul Smith commended the proposal and noted the high number of particularly Aboriginal graves that remain unmarked in Cowra’s cemetery.
“It will save a lot of sadness, and I think it will promote a lot of self-respect,” he said.
Supported by all members of council, Clr Watt also thanked the Cowra Local Aboriginal Lands Council, for spearheading the course and linking students up with TAFE coordinator Kane Smith.
“It's a great combination of elements of building capacity … what we're doing is only about Council costs in waiving the fee that we would normally charge to apply to place the monument, it's a great way for us to contribute to to a project that's been headed by these different organisations, by TAFE and by the Land Council, to contribute,” she said.
Students were set to complete the course by March 14, restoring thirteen headstones at the cemetery.
Clr Downing said there was an opportunity for entrepreneurial students to take their experience to the next level, offering affordable headstones for the Cowra community and beyond.
“This could lead to a future business person doing this kind of thing, and that would be great. Our closest [headstone maker] is Eugowra, and it's granite, so these cement ones would be much more affordable,” she said.
“It could be a great business idea for someone to take up.”
