Aboriginal elder Dennis Jetta receives Order of Australia Medal at investiture ceremony at Government House

A South West Aboriginal Elder has officially been recognised for his service to the community, four months after being named to receive a national honour. Dennis Jetta was formally awarded his Medal of the Order of Australia at a ceremony at Government House in Perth on Wednesday, which was also attended by his four children. He said he was “overwhelmed” to receive the accolade, admitting he still could not believe he had received it. “I didn’t think I would win anything like that . . . but it is a good feeling,” he said. One of the highlights of the ceremony for Mr Jetta was meeting the other award recipients, who were also recognised in the Australia Day honours list. “We all got to know each other because we were together for most of the day,” he said. Mr Jetta has received a positive response to being named an OAM recipient, receiving phone calls of congratulations and letters from several South West politicians, as well as Premier Mark McGowan. He recalled his response when asked, during the ceremony, what drove his community service during the ceremony. “What I did, I did it because I love doing it — I love helping people,” he said. Mr Jetta has received his OAM “for service to the Indigenous communities of the Bunbury region”. Among some of his favourite achievements are 40 years working as a pastor, including 30 years of chaplaincy work at Bunbury Regional Prison, alongside his role at the former Commonwealth Employment Service. “That was an achievement that I really loved doing because it was good getting jobs for the Aboriginal people in the South West and Great Southern like traineeships and apprenticeships, and I was involved with that for a long time,” he said. Today, the 82-year-old shows no sign of slowing down, continuing to give back to the community through his pastoral work and his role conducting cultural awareness training for South West police, doctors and nurses. There is a chance Mr Jetta could receive further recognition for his work in July, when he flies to Brisbane for NAIDOC Week after being nominated for the national elder of the year title.