Elder, story-teller, and Widjabul Wieybal woman from the Bundjalung Nation, Rhoda Roberts AO, who grew up in Lismore, passed away on Saturday, 21 March.
‘The Roberts-Field family are heartbroken to announce that our beautiful Rhoda Roberts has returned to the Dreaming on Saturday, March 21 at 1pm,’ her family said on Ms Roberts’ Instagram page.
‘She passed peacefully in hospital after a seven-month fight with a very rare type of ovarian cancer.’
From nurse to prime-time pioneer
Ms Robert started her career as a nurse, despite being refused the chance to study nursing locally.
Her mother took her to Sydney to study, where she became a registered nurse in 1979.
Ms Roberts worked across the arts industry becoming a dynamic force across Australian cultural institutions and introduced the term ‘Welcome to Counry’.
She became the first Aboriginal person to host a prime-time current affairs program, SBS’s Vox Populi, in 1990, The Guardian has stated.
Their report says that while working in radio in 1992, Ms Roberts co-founded Deadly Sounds, ‘giving Indigenous people a voice across Australia and the Pacific.’
The program ran for 21 years.
He had a dream, her dad shared it, she sang it
Ms Roberts is also credited with having co-founded the Aboriginal National Theatre Trust in 1988 and launching the Dreaming festival/Garrabadu in 1995, to ‘sing the water alive’.
She went on to become an award-winning producer, artistic director, journalist, broadcaster, actor, curator and advisor, as acknowledged by SBS.
The Guardian says her father once prayed with Martin Luther King Jr and was heavily involved in the 1967 Referendum, going on to speak at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in 1972.
He was instrumental in establishing the Koori Mail newspaper, which still runs from a newsroom in Lismore next to Wilsons River.
He is said to have encouraged his children to speak Language at home despite it being outlawed, and to have instilled in them the foundational lesson of service to their community.
Family honours woman of ‘pure love’
Ms Robert’s family posted the following tribute:
‘Rhoda will be deeply missed by all whose hearts she touched, she was an incredible person in so many ways.
‘Words fail to capture the true love, depth, intelligence and warmth that was our beloved Rhoda.
‘She dedicated her life to culture, country, and people from all walks of life.
‘She never judged and never discriminated, she always wanted to help uplift people’s lives and provide love and care.
‘She faced so much trauma in her life, but continued fighting and never gave up.
‘Her strength, dedication and pure love will forever be remembered.
‘She helped make incredible, positive change for so many and for this Country.
‘She will be so deeply missed, no one compared to our Rhoda and there will never be another like her.’
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