Multifest ‘connecting the community’

When Koro Reg Tohia started a festival to bring the community together more than 20 years ago, he had no idea how big it would become.

More than 1,000 people are expected at this Friday’s Ipswich Multifest, which will celebrate the city’s multicultural diversity with a day of music, dance, activities and food from around the world.

Reg Tohia was part of the group which first launched the event back in 1995, when it was known as Polyfest, and he’s enjoyed watching it grow ever since.

“We started it for the kids, to give them a better connection to where they’re and to keep the culture alive,” Mr Tohia said.

“When we started, there was only about five schools taking part.

“Then we had 40 schools participating – and now everyone wants to be a part of it.”

Mr Tohia moved over to Ipswich from New Zealand back in 1974, just one day before the floods.

“We were staying at the guesthouse above the Ulster hotel, and when the waters came up, we went out and started handing out beers to people who were going down the street in canoes,” Mr Tohia said.

“That was my initiation to Ipswich.”

Now in his eighties, the former Ipswich Boys Grammar teacher has carried that sense of community spirit and fun throughout the decades, getting involved in everything from volunteering for the Salvation Army to playing rugby for the Ipswich Raiders.

He continued to teach after retiring, volunteering at Dinmore Primary School and Bundamba State Secondary College, where he was always seen with his beloved dog Panda by his side.

“Everyone loved Panda, she was 20 when she died, but she would come everywhere with me and the kids would give her a bit of iced coffee, which was her favourite,” Mr Tohia said.

Panda’s ashes are now buried in the grounds of Bundamba State Secondary College, where she even had a starring role in the school musical one year.

As Multifest approaches, Koro Reg is still visited by students, past and present, who look up to him as a community elder.

“A lot of these students are giving up their lunch breaks and after school time to practise their performances for Multifest,” Mr Tohia said.

“It stops them playing up, because they make an agreement to attend school so they can go to Multifest. It’s a stepping stone for youth education and it’s about sharing our culture.”

Mr Tohia created his own piece of art to be used as part of this year’s Multifest logo, which merges five different artworks on the map of Queensland.

Indigenous artist Annie Clarke, Samoan artist Nathaniel McGregor and Congolese artist David Kambale Iwabo also contributed their art to the piece, which aims to show the diversity and mixing of cultures across the region.

Mr Tohia said he did his artwork (pictured on the far right of the map) during a recent stay in hospital.

“The black lines symbolise the beams or rafters in a home. It’s about love and family,” he said.

Mr Tohia admits that he will have to slow down a bit this year, but he wants to make sure Multifest continues to be a showcase of culture and not a competition. 

“When events like this become controlled by money, you lose the whole sense of what it’s about,” Mr Tohia said.

“Multifest has always been about supporting each other and sharing our culture, not about competing against other performers.”

“It’s about having a good time, bringing your family, enjoying the music and entertainment and sharing our culture.

“If that happens, we’re achieving what we set out to do.”

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