Gunditjmara Elder Uncle Ken Saunders passes away aged 79

The south-west is mourning the loss of Gunditjmara Elder Uncle Ken Saunders.

The 79-year-old touched the lives of thousands through decades of campaigning for the Indigenous community.

He'll be best remembered for his work in Lake Condah's restoration, leading to the site's World Heritage listing in 2019.

Mr Saunders had a strong connection to the land, having spent his youth on the Lake Condah Mission.

He attended school in the region but didn't complete his studies.

"It wasn't a good life growing up. Back in those days there was a lot of racism," his son Joey Saunders said.

"I reckon it gave him the fire to make sure that sort of thing didn't keep happening."

Mr Saunders established himself as an early advocate for First Nations people across regional Victoria.

He later moved to Melbourne and became one of the first councillors for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) when it was formed in 1990.

His work with the Australian Democrats allowed him to contest the seat of Northcote in the 1998 state by-election, finishing runner-up with 26.3 per cent of the vote.

Mr Saunders said his father had always been a good negotiator.

"He could walk into any sort of scenario and talk like a politician, then revert back and be a father, an uncle, a mentor or a leader," he said.

Gunditjmara man Uncle Michael Bell said this ability to "live in two worlds", the Aboriginal and the political, came from his father and older brother Reg Saunders.

Reg made history in 1950 when he became the first Indigenous person to achieve the rank of captain in the Australian Army. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1971.

"They were significant influences on Uncle Ken and he brought those skills to us," he said.

"Not many of our mob could communicate in the two worlds and Unc demonstrated that we needed to."

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Mr Saunders moved back to the south-west in the late 1990s but his work in First Nations affairs didn't slow down.

He later became the first Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer (ACLO) in Victoria. Uncle Michael Bell said the position helped facilitate a better relationship between police and Indigenous people.

"Back in the '90s, unemployment was quite high in our community as well as overrepresentation in the criminal justice and out-of-home care sectors," he said.

"Unc really brought about strong cultural governance and accountability to our community."

His other endeavours included work with the Victorian Aboriginal Health Service (VAHS) and a stint as a Glenelg Shire councillor from 2008 to 2012.

Mr Saunders passed away in Portland on August 31, 2023 after a short battle with cancer. He's survived by five children and 10 grandchildren.

Despite all of his achievements, he remained a modest man and shied away from the limelight.

"I've had hundreds of people get in touch me with me after he passed. There's things I didn't know he was involved with, but I'm learning now," Joey Saunders said.

"For a kid that lived on the mission and was told not to express his culture, to go on to become a pioneer in what we're doing today, that's just amazing."

Uncle Michael said Uncle Ken would want to be remembered as a great communicator above all else.

"He showed us that being self-determining is the way we could address a lot of the social issues that impacted us," he said.

"His contribution to our community has been immense and is not to be forgotten."

The funeral service will be held at the Tae Rak Aquaculture Centre from 1pm on Friday, September 15. Internment will take place afterwards at the Lake Condah Mission Cemetery.

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