The second of two significant funerals to take place in Lismore earlier this week was that of Aunty Rhoda Roberts AO.
Over 1,000 people filled St Carthage’s Cathedral to overflowing as they said farewell to this Widjabul Wia-bal woman from the Bundjalung Nation who had been a trailblazer in multiple fields, a descendant of the famous Roberts family of the Northern Rivers.
Born in 1959, the daughter and granddaughter of local pastors, Aunty Rhoda died of ovarian cancer last month. She was one of the first Aboriginal people to be regularly seen on Australian screens, as an actor and presenter, and went on to perform crucial cultural roles, including at the Sydney Olympics and the Opera House.
There was a request for no photography inside the cathedral for the funeral, apart from the cameras of SBS, with the whole event being livestreamed on NITV.
From 2021 until the time of her death, Aunty Rhoda was Elder-in-residence at SBS. This was just one of her many professional roles, which spanned the media and performing arts, from Lismore (including at the Koori Mail), to the rest of Australia and internationally.
Organised by Aunty Rhoda herself, this was an extraordinary funeral, attended by a who’s who of Indigenous Australia, and including the artistic and cultural voices of many of her diverse collaborators across a long and distinguished career.
Outside the cathedral, the event opened with a smoking ceremony led by Uncle Gilbert Laurie. Inside it was standing room only, with religious officiation duties split between the Deacon Graeme Davis, who described Rhoda as a ‘truly remarkable lady’, and the Reverend Denise Savage, who thanked the Catholic community for graciously and generously opening their sacred space.
Uncle Gilbert delivered a very personal welcome to country (a tradition, incidentally, which was brought into white Australia and popularised by Rhoda and her forbears).
Beloved
Rhoda’s son Jack Roberts-Field played some powerful yidaki, followed by a song from the Book of the Dead by Rhoda’s friend, the Tibetan-Australian musician Tenzin Choegyal, known for his collaborations with Laurie Anderson and Phillip Glass.
Reverend Savage said, ‘Rhoda raised a voice for First Peoples in profound and transformative ways. She is beloved.’
Fighting back tears, Rhoda’s daughter Sarah Roberts-Field said, ‘To spend just a moment with Rhoda felt like the greatest gift. She was our mother, but she wasn’t only ours…
‘Mum was the kindest person I’ve ever known in my life. I know her kindness was unmatched, and her generosity so deep… Her kindness came from within her spirit. It wasn’t a performance or something given to try to make you like her. Her compassion, empathy and warmth was innate, and she would give it so freely and deeply because of her ability to truly see your soul and activate your power. She believed in others and their power, and she could somehow see it before you even knew you had it in you.’
Sarah went on to speak about her mother’s many firsts, accolades and achievements, while emphasising her tireless work to continue her family’s legacy of cultural connection.
‘It wasn’t for money, fame or power. It was obligation, responsibility,’ she said. ‘She was the first person to teach me that the country I listen to, walk, breathe and live on is ours, that country is alive, is mother, and we must take care of it. She taught me about our worlds – this world, the ones below and the ones above; to always be proactive and everything has a solution…
‘”When you feel alone, my darling girl, just look up to the trees and remember that every ancestor is a leaf. We are never alone.” When she entered the room, you went quiet and still. Her energy was so captivating, and it was like the greatest professor had just started class. Her intelligence, memory and knowledge was incredible.’
Many paths were blocked, but Rhoda helped clear them
Sarah talked about her mother’s role as a trailblazer, and her belief that ‘the only way to combat hatred and discrimination is with love, kindness and generosity, patience and understanding…
‘Thank you for never giving up, even in the face of such deep trauma and pain. You were so funny, witty, brilliant and absolutely fabulous, darling! I will continue to speak your name and story and carry on as best I can all the extraordinary things you did.’
Rhoda’s son, her ‘Bundjalung warrior’ Jack then said, ‘I was going to start by listing all of mum’s accolades, but when the printer ran out of ink on the fourteenth page I took it as a sign to talk about something else.’
Jack then shared a number of personal anecdotes about growing up with his extraordinary mum, before reading a poem he had written about her called ‘Mama Bear’.
After the congregation stood and sang the hymn ‘Old Rugged Cross’, a group of Aunty Rhoda’s friends and colleagues from Sydney shared their memories, including her love of pranks, glasses of wine and a wonderful sense of humour which survived right to the end, as she organised her own funeral with them from her bed in Maclean Hospital.
Thee were more memories from Rhoda’s nieces of her love and warmth, before everyone stood for the hymn ‘Amazing Grace’, accompanied by the cathedral organist.
The loss of Lois
Rhoda’s aunty Lola Roberts spoke about the tragic loss of Rhoda’s twin sister, Lois, years earlier (thought to have been murdered near Lismore, but the crime has never been solved).
Lola talked about her memories of the family growing up in Lismore, all guided by her father, Pastor Frank Roberts Jr, whom Rhoda emulated in leading others to be the best they could be, ‘and make a stand for themselves’.
Aunty Rhoda’s colleague Aaron Fa’oso said Rhoda’s life didn’t just open doors, ‘but changed what was possible on the other side of them. You were a force, but you were more than that. You were grounded in power… grounded in lore, connected to country, carrying culture, not as a performance but as responsibility.
‘Because you knew who you were, you could walk into any space and never lose yourself: board rooms, back stages, community halls, global stages. You didn’t adjust to the room, the room adjusted to you,’ he remembered.
Mr Fa’oso spoke about Aunty Rhoda’s recent one woman play about her Olympian boxer cousin Frank, which she performed at the Opera House to an audience including the prime minister and other dignitaries, and her extensive work behind the scenes at other festivals and events.
‘I will carry you with me always,’ he said. ‘I will feel you on country, and I will keep doing the work.’
Immense talent
Rhoda’s daughter Sarah read a letter from the Governor-General, Sam Mostyn, including these words: ‘Her leadership across the arts and media landscape was profound and enduring. Appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2016, Rhoda represented the very best of Australia’s honours system…
‘She was history-making, an immense talent, a dynamic leader and an astonishing innovator.’
Country music legend and Bundjalung man Troy Cassar Daly went to the microphone to perform his moving song about returning to country, ‘Old Road Home’, followed by a lullaby Rhoda asked him to perform, although he said ‘it never worked with my jarjums!’
Casey Donovan sang an extraordinary version of ‘Ave Maria’ before the Muggera dancers came down the aisle of the cathedral in full paint, followed by the Jannawi dancers, altogether thirty strong, and filling the space with their energy and power, surrounding the coffin and filling the space with the sounds of yidaki, clapsticks, and singing.
The final musical performance came from Djakapurra Maymurru Munyarryun, a powerful Yolngnu singer from Arnhem Land who said he called Rhoda ‘Mum’.
Draped in an Aboriginal flag, the white coffin was carried out by Aunty Rhoda’s family and friends as the assembled mourners wept.
At the conclusion of proceedings, everyone filed out to lay flowers and other tributes on Rhoda’s coffin. She was buried in Goonellabah.
This was a remarkable funeral for a remarkable person, one of the great women of the Northern Rivers.
Vale Aunty Rhoda Roberts AO.
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