An intimate look at the life of Eden Indigenous elder Ossie Cruse will be screened on ABC television next month.
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The documentary by local film-maker Toni Houston will air on Australian Story on July 3.
“It promises to be an amazing testimony to Uncle Ossie’s life and legacy,” Ms Houston said.
“Heartfelt thanks to everyone who participated, agreed to appear on camera, and helped along the way. It’s been a privilege working on this very special project.”
A promo for the episode is now on the Australia Story website.
It reads:
Ossie Cruse was a 34-year-old father of three during the historic 1967 Referendum, in which more than 90 per cent of Australians voted in favour of amending the Australian Constitution in support of Aboriginal people.
Now a distinguished Elder, he vividly recalls the hardships caused by segregation and the extreme racism experienced during his youth.
Since converting to Christianity in 1962, Pastor Uncle Ossie Cruse has devoted his life to improving the lives and rights of Indigenous Australians on a national level. But now at 83, he's focussing on the rehabilitation of troubled youth in his home country around Eden, New South Wales.
And he's doing this through a project called "Healing Through Learning" which helps young people to re-engage with their Aboriginal culture.
An integral part of the project is the development of the Bundian Way, an ancient ancestral pathway scattered with Indigenous artefacts and early European settler ruins, which he hopes will become a cultural tourism pilgrimage.