THE Queensland Police Pipes and Drums band visits the north west region to celebrate NAIDOC Week.
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10 members of the Brisbane based band perform at Naidoc events in Mount Isa and in Normanton.
It is understood from the band’s administrator, and second-in-charge, Sergeant Monique Duncan, that they have not visited the north west region in more than 20 years.
A band member said the band have visited communities outside of Brisbane four times in about as many years. Their next major performance will be in Cairns for the International Women and Law Enforcement Conference in September.
“Obviously we are one band for all of Queensland,” Sgt Duncan said. “We do not get to go to rural areas all that often but we try to fit it in. It’s a positive side of QPS they can bring to rural communities.”
It is performing in Mount Isa following an early request by a local police liaison officer which had been approved in QPS bureaucracy.
QPS Pipes and Drums was formed in 1958 and is considered one of Australia’s better pipe bands, according to the QPS website.
They play bagpipes and snare and bass drums.
The members perform at numerous QPS formal functions such as retiring officers’ piping out ceremonies, opening and closing events, parades for recruits, and community functions such as at schools.
Their first performance in the region this week was at the Queensland Police Service’s flag raising ceremony in front of Mount Isa Police Headquarters on Monday morning.
The band performed at the Normanton community hall on Tuesday. On Thursday it is scheduled to perform at Outback at Isa, and the Laura Johnson retirement home in Mount Isa.
On Friday it will perform in the Naidoc march. The members return to Brisbane on Sunday.
Speakers at the QPS flag raising ceremony included police liaison officer and Kalkadoon elder George Leon, and acting Inspector Brad Inskip.
The acting Inspector also presented a police service medal to police liaison officer Rachael Ambrum, who has served QPS for 10 years.