Spend some time with Karwin Knox: professionally trained dancer, Indigenous ranger, father of three.
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In his 28th year in a land his people have inhabited since time immemorial, Knox has embraced two traditions in order to enhance his life and the lives of others.
Early this year, the Tamworth High graduate began work as a Walaaybaa Ranger. He saw the job advertised on Facebook, when he was working as a driver at Sydney airport.
Knox applied for the position so he could return to Tamworth and be with his family, having spent weekends travelling back and forth between Sydney and his hometown.
But as part of a four-strong ranger team, he has gained a greater understanding of his culture while also giving back to the community.
"Our main focus is to try and find more of our Indigenous sights in and around Tamworth," he said of the Walaaybaa Rangers, who operate under the Tamworth Local Aboriginal Land Council. "But we're here to help out the community, just help out anyone."
Being connected to the land and his culture, while learning new things, appeals to Knox. So does being a father his children can look up to.
He regards parenthood as his greatest challenge in life. But implanted in his mind is the blueprint he uses to raise his children, aged six weeks, three and four; it's another tradition, of sorts, that has been passed down to him.
"Everything that I've been taught by my parents, I've taken that in," he said, adding "We all make decisions, mistakes, but it's my job to try and put them [his children] on a good path."
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For a long time, Knox was on the path of a dancer. Cultural dancing would eventually be augmented by a host of dance styles, including ballet, contemporary and jazz, when he attended the NAISDA Dance College at Gosford.
After three years, he graduated with a cert 4 in professional dance.
"It would be something I'd like to get back into. I still haven't forgotten about it," he said of dance.
"But I try and tell the younger generation that if you can't use verbal words to get your story out, you can use dance as a way to get your story to people."
Having a newborn, whom he is raising with his partner Sheena Ruttley, has disrupted his sleep pattern. But despite that, he played for Dreamtime Touch at the annual Tamworth Touch Tournament at Gipps Street on Saturday, October 28.
His involvement in the event was in keeping with his "being out and about" life philosophy, as he put it.
"So, being able to follow my dream and just being able to be there for everyone," he said.
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