Pertame School

A huge thank you to Baker Boy for coming to visit our Pertame School kids at our Language Nest. During an incredibly difficult time for our family and community, your visit brought so much joy, laughter and happiness to our children. We are so grateful for the time you spent with them.

Baker Boy is such an incredible role model for our children by showing them just how far you can go when you are proud of who you are, where you come from, and your Indigenous language and culture. Seeing someone proudly sing and perform in their language on such a big stage is incredibly powerful for our kids.

Our Pertame kids shared one of our songs in Pertame with Baker Boy, and we were so grateful when he kindly gifted us tickets to his show in Alice Springs. It was so special to see him shine in his element and experience the energy of his performance together as a school.

We also loved connecting with Alice Kings at the show, more incredible young role model for our kids.

Thank you, Baker Boy, for helping our children see what is possible.

🌿🎨 PERTAME KIDS - WE NEED YOUR HELP! 🎨🌿

We are designing our NEW Pertame School building and playground and we want our Pertame kids to help us decide what it should look like! 🛝🌳🏫

💭 What would your dream Pertame School playground look like?

Please see the designs below for some inspiration! 👇✨

You can draw whatever you think would make our new Pertame School a fun, beautiful and special place for our kids.

You could include:
🌿 Places to play
🛝 Your favourite playground equipment
🌳 Trees, bush tucker and Country
🎨 Art and cultural designs
🏃 Places to run, climb and explore
🪃 Anything else you would love to see at Pertame School!

It DOES NOT have to be perfect! ❤️
Just grab a piece of paper, draw your ideas and take a photo of your picture on your phone.

📩 Send your drawing to:
[email protected] or text to 0447 048 120
or Inbox it to us here on Facebook.

🎟️ PRIZE! 🎟️
Everyone who sends in a drawing will be placed into the draw to win a cinema pass! 🍿🎬

The winner will be pulled out of a hat! 🎩

Most importantly, we want to see YOUR ideas. This is going to be a school for Pertame kids, so we want Pertame kids to help us design it! ❤️🌿

Get drawing! We can’t wait to see your ideas! 🎨✨
Please send them in by Wednesday next week the 26th of August

Our Pertame kids had a beautiful day out at Araluen Park! 🌿

The kids had a wonderful time running around, playing together, enjoying some healthy food and, most importantly, spending time with family and speaking Pertame.

Days like this are so special to create happy memories, strengthening connections to family and culture, and giving our children opportunities to learn and use Pertame in everyday life.

A beautiful day of family, culture, language and connection. 💚

Our Pertame kids did a beautiful job learning and singing Nearer, My God, to Thee in Pertame to honour their Nana, Pebi and great-great-grandmother at her service. ❤️

It was such a special and emotional moment for our children to honour her through language and song.

A huge thank you to Chris from ABC for capturing this incredible moment for us to share in the church. We are so grateful to have this beautiful memory preserved. ❤️

The Swan family would like to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped us farewell our beloved Christobel.

To everyone who travelled from near and far to attend her funeral, thank you for making the journey to be there with us. Your presence meant so much to our family.
To everyone who sent messages of love, condolences and kind thoughts, and to everyone who donated to the Crowdfunder to help us with the cost of Christobel’s burial, we are incredibly grateful for your generosity and support during such a difficult time.

A special thank you to our family who came together and brought food for the wake. Family always came first for Christobel, and her family really came through for her. It was beautiful to see everyone come together to celebrate her life, share stories, eat together and support one another, just as she would have wanted.

We would also like to give a huge thank you to the amazing staff at Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education and the Centre for Australian Languages and Linguistics for all of their support with transport, catering and setting up the wake. Your generosity and hard work helped make the day possible, and we are so grateful.

Thank you to Treat Me Good Cafe & Catering for your generous salad donation for the wake. It was very much appreciated.

And to the Lutheran Church, Pastor Basil, Pastor Ben, Russell Goldflame and Vanessa, thank you for providing such a beautiful, touching and meaningful service for Christobel. It was a service truly fit for her, and we are so grateful for the care and love you put into honouring her life.

Christobel was deeply loved, and the outpouring of love and support we have received has reminded us just how many lives she touched.

Family was everything to Christobel and in the days surrounding her passing, her family showed just how much she meant to them.

Thank you to everyone who helped us honour and farewell our beautiful sister, mother, aunty, nana and pebi Christobel.
🖤❤️💛

Today, the NT News has published a beautiful tribute to our beloved Pertame matriarch, Christobel Swan, recognising her extraordinary life and the legacy she leaves behind.

Christobel dedicated her life to ensuring that the Pertame language would not be lost. She inspired generations through her vision which continues to live on through the Pertame School and every child learning their language today.

We are grateful to the NT News for helping to share Christobel's story and the importance of keeping our languages strong. We hope her legacy inspires many more people to understand why this work matters.

Thank you to everyone who has shared their memories, kind words and support with the Swan family and our community over the past week. Your love has meant more than words can express.

Facing punishment as a child for speaking her own language, Christobel Swan went on to help save it – and now her family is asking for help to honour her extraordinary legacy. Story 👉 https://bit.ly/4fnZqJx

It is with deep sadness that we share the funeral details for our beloved Pertame matriarch, Christobel Swan.

Christobel's passing is a profound loss for her family, the Pertame people and the wider Alice Springs community. She was a loving sister, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, great-great-grandmother, sister and aunty, and the heart of the Pertame language revival movement. It is because of Christobel's unwavering vision, determination and love for her language that the Pertame School exists today.

Despite growing up in a time when Aboriginal children were punished for speaking their own language, Christobel refused to let Pertame be lost. She devoted her life to ensuring future generations would know their language, culture and identity. Her dream was to see all Pertame children growing up speaking their own language and knowing who they are and where they come from.

The Swan family have kindly asked us to share the details of Christobel's funeral so that all those whose lives she touched can come together to honour and celebrate her remarkable life. It is their wish that her name and image be shared to honour her legacy.

Christobel's legacy lives on in every Pertame child learning their language today, and we remain committed to carrying her vision forward for generations to come.

Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with Christobel's family and loved ones. Thank you to everyone who has walked alongside Christobel and the Pertame community over the years. Your support has helped make her lifelong dream a reality.

It was a pleasure to connect with the team from Aboriginal Investment NT at the Desert Peoples Centre event. We are incredibly grateful for Aboriginal Investment NT's support in funding our new Pertame Language Nest classroom. This is an investment in our children, our Elders, our language, and our future.

Our new classroom will provide a dedicated space where the next generation can learn through total language immersion, surrounded by culture, community, and the wisdom of our Elders. Every word spoken in Pertame within those walls will help strengthen one of Australia's critically endangered languages for generations to come.

Thank you, Aboriginal Investment NT, for believing in our vision and walking alongside us as we continue this important journey of self-determination.