It was a solemn occasion when 2019's NAIDOC Week was officially opened outside Griffith City Council chambers on Monday morning.
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It came just after the death of Aunty Marg, a beloved elder who was known as a great storyteller with a bottomless knowledge of local Wiradjuri history.
Her legacy won't be forgotten, however, as her stories are remembered by the younger generations who will continue to carry the torch.
This year's NAIDOC ceremony was led by elder Judy Johnson, who spoke on the theme of "Voice, Treaty, Truth."
"The truth of Australia's Aboriginal history needs to be acknowledged before we can move towards reconciliation and peace," Mrs Johnson said.
The truth of Australia's past can be grim, as Mrs Johnson knows very well; she remembers a time when things were much worse for Aboriginal people.
As a child growing up in Griffith she was forbidden from using the bus and was forced to sit in segregated seats at the cinema.
She remembers running and hiding from welfare officers, who would patrol the streets in their white vans.
It was a rough childhood, but Mrs Johnson said that slowly but surely, attitudes have changed for the better over the years.
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She said she still comes across racist attitudes that have been passed down from previous generations, but that overall her children live in a better world than the one she was born into.
Her children have been able to go to university and buy houses, which would have been unthinkable back in her day.
That's not to say everything is solved - she says she still comes across the odd racist slur now and then - but progress has definitely been made.
"One of these days we won't have all these labels," Mrs Johnson said.
"One of these days we'll all just be Australians - that's what we all need to keep working towards."
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