A member of the Stolen Generations, Rene Powell was born in the Warburton Ranges of Western Australia's Central Desert areas but was removed from her family in 1952 at the age of four and sent to Mount Margaret Mission. While there, Powell was badly burned and the scarring left her unable to sit up straight. Powell was continuously punished for her bad posture and the missionaries often 'exhibited' her scars to visitors. At the mission, Powell was told that her family didn't want her, and for the next 14 years she lived on missions. She was trained for domestic work at Kurrawang Mission then sent out to work.
Powell was married to English man John Kennedy for 20 years until his death. Her need for personal documentation to enable them to get married was the catalyst for her research in government records, correspondence and reports, inquiry findings and personal files in an attempt to find the truth about her past.
