THE Proud and Deadly awards live on despite a recent funding cut that sent organisers scrambling in a bid to keep them going.
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The awards which have a history of more than 10 years of recognising Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander achievement were this year organised on a school-to-school basis.
In previous years, Griffith schools came together and ran the awards as a collective ceremony.
A funding grant from the NSW Aboriginal Land Council was a lifeline for Griffith Public School, which ran their own awards.
Griffith Public Aboriginal education officer Maxine Kirby said without funding, the awards could have been cancelled.
"I'm disappointed because the schools couldn't come together and celebrate together," she said. "Without any money, it's a hard thing to put together.
"The value is that we can appreciate our culture a bit more and share it through readings."
Ms Kirby said she hoped the prizes stirred a passion for education among Aboriginal students and encouraged them to find learning fun.
This year's recipients received books that tell Koori stories.
"We want to acknowledge our students that have been trying hard this year," she said.
"We thought it would be nice to give them books to appreciate the effort they put in.
"A lot of the awards are encouragement awards."
Ms Kirby thanked parents and students who attended the award night, where an estimated 100 people came through the doors. She also thanked assistant principal Jan Kitchingman.
"Without their support, we couldn't have done it," she said.