The Rhodian Brotherhood has been in existence for over 65 years and the club’s objective is to promote, facilitate and practice the unique history and culture from the Greek island of Rhodes.  

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The founders’ original objective was to have a place of gathering for newly arrived migrants, so they could associate with people of a similar culture and who shared the same language, values, traditions, religion and regional island customs.  

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Over many decades the Rhodian Brotherhood has facilitated numerous social and cultural activities which have included:

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• the performance of traditional dance;
   

• preparation of foods typified by the island’s traditional cuisine;
   

• celebrations of religiously significant days (Saints’ days, Greek Orthodox Easter); and
   

• celebrations of historical and political significance (‘Ensomatosi’ - Dodecanese Independence Day).

 

These activities continue to be facilitated and supported by the Rhodian Brotherhood. Although the aim of such activities is to maintain cultural identity, they also serve an important role in nurturing a sense of belonging in Australia’s multicultural society and thus, foster better community integration. Importantly for our growing number of elderly members, these activities play an important part in the prevention of social isolation, offering culturally and linguistically relevant social activities, to which many of our elderly members may otherwise not have access.

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Since inception, the Rhodian Brotherhood has evolved by incorporating the changing needs of its membership.  Our committee and membership are now multigenerational, combining first, second and in many cases third generation members of Rhodian ancestry.  Many of our members are over 65 years of age and still require support to prevent social isolation and marginalization.  Through shared activity our organisation endeavours to create inclusion, by maintaining events that are culturally familiar to our older members, whilst introducing younger members to our rich ancestral and cultural history, fostering the organisation’s continued relevance.  

 

The aim is to provide a centre that educates and includes younger members to the unique, history & traditions from this region, allowing members to maintain a sense of belonging and cultural identity into the future.