State funeral for Uncle Alf

Aboriginal elder Uncle Alf will be remembered as a pioneer who worked hard to bridge the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.

A state funeral celebrating the life of Alf Bamblett will be held in Moama on Thursday.

Born on an Aboriginal reserve outside Leeton in NSW, he died on March 14, aged 71.

He worked as a fruit picker, a plasterer and a touring boxer before finding his home in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy.

Angered by the prejudice and poverty he saw there, Uncle Alf was determined to end the divide between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.

He was instrumental in establishing the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and a number of other Aboriginal services throughout the state.

His work was recognised when he was awarded Victorian Aboriginal of the Year in 1994 and inducted into the Indigenous Honour Roll in 2011.