Orcas and earworms: Narooma school launches new song, film clip about Old Tom

This week, a catchy song about the legendary orca was the centrepiece of Narooma Public School's NAIDOC Week celebrations.

On Friday, July 4, students, staff and parents gathered for a special assembly to celebrate the school's cultural links.

NAIDOC's theme for 2025 was 'The next generation: strength, vision and legacy', and Friday's assembly was just one way that Narooma PS was seeing that theme play out.

As well as presenting several Indigenous students with awards for school leadership and creative endeavours, there were also a number of performances.

Key among them was the launch of Old Tom, a song written by music teacher Michelle Garcia and Aboriginal education officer Lynn Thomas.

The song launch was accompanied by a professionally recorded and produced film clip, which involved around 300 students from the area.

Ms Thomas said the relationship of the region's Indigenous people and orcas like Old Tom was very important, and so was being able to share those stories with younger generations.

"Old Tom's story does link areas, because the whales go past [Narooma], they go south to Eden," Ms Thomas said.

"And of course, it's a time when the Aboriginal people followed the song lines down to the Eden whaling station."

Ms Thomas said the Indigenous people knew it was time to head south when a particular blossom began blooming.

"Mind you, there's 1000 blossom trees, but they knew the right one to follow as it started to come out, and they followed that track all the way down to Eden. And it was time when the whales were coming in."

She said Old Tom was "part of the family".

"My dad and my grandfather lived in an old bark hut on the side of the Davidson whaling station," Ms Thomas said.

Ms Thomas's father was renowned Indigenous leader Guboo Ted Thomas, and her grandfather was William Iberia Thomas.

"When the whales would come along the coast, Old Tom would come in and he would slap his tail on the water to wake them up out of the huts and tell them, 'the whales are here'."

Ms Garcia said the music and creative culture program at Narooma PS brought stories, dance, song (and fun) into the classroom.

One of the ways they did that was by writing their own songs.

"We get inspired by these stories like Old Tom.

"I involved all of my students in the whole process, and Lynn came along with me and we were able to revive that story and retell it with a new, fresh outlook and perspective.

"And we had a bit of fun along the way. We went down to Eden and we dressed up - we tried not to giggle while we looked at ourselves."

Seeing the final product and the reaction it had among the school community made Ms Garcia "so, so happy".

"It was so much work that went into it, it's at least six months' work.

"The number of people that were involved, the teachers, the amount of organisation...but also being able to do it at a level that inspires the children, and also getting them to physically be involved through Aboriginal dance and traditional dance moves and also Aboriginal languages.

"It just makes it a really great platform for them to learn even more."

Ms Thomas said she felt very privileged that the stories of her family and her culture were being shared so eagerly with new generations.

"We have the past, present and the future, and those words connect us to Country, connects our next generations, and we understand and we learn from our elders.

"It's like a cycle that will eventually reach the next generation, so that the story is just flowing, and they get to understand and find themselves in it, and know who they are. So, it's really important."

Along with the song and performances on Friday, a new artwork for the already mural-adorned school was unveiled.

It also featured Old Tom and was designed and created by Ms Thomas and fellow teacher Trevor Neville, with input from students as well.

During the morning assembly, principal Paul Sweeney said it was "essential" we listened to the voices of our Indigenous communities and that schools played a vital role in that.

"We need to ensure their stories are told, listened to and respected," he said.