Four generations of Agnes Chambers’ family followed in her footsteps in a project to honour the Wonthaggi Miners Women’s Auxiliary. From left, Nicola Strating, Doris Chambers, Nellie, 3,
Corinn Strating and Lyndal Chambers. All photos: Karli Duckett
Corinn Strating and Lyndal Chambers. All photos: Karli Duckett
By Lyndal Chambers
HAVE you seen the new work of art emblazoned on the Union Theatre? I’m thrilled to see Radical Women come to fruition.
The work honours my grandmother Agnes Chambers, alongside Agnes Doig and the Wonthaggi Miners Women’s Auxiliary.
My granny, Agnes Chambers, was president of the Auxiliary for many years. She believed in a fair go for working people and was prepared to speak out to achieve that aim, as were the other incredible women of the Auxiliary. They stood up and took action for their families, their husbands and their community.
HAVE you seen the new work of art emblazoned on the Union Theatre? I’m thrilled to see Radical Women come to fruition.
The work honours my grandmother Agnes Chambers, alongside Agnes Doig and the Wonthaggi Miners Women’s Auxiliary.
My granny, Agnes Chambers, was president of the Auxiliary for many years. She believed in a fair go for working people and was prepared to speak out to achieve that aim, as were the other incredible women of the Auxiliary. They stood up and took action for their families, their husbands and their community.
Granny wasn’t loud but she was a strong matriarch who networked, listened, persisted and kept people moving in the same direction. "Indomitable" is the word that springs to mind.
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My early memories of Granny involve family gatherings in Wonthaggi or down at Inverloch "on the block" during summer, with songs and political debate around the dinner table. We drank in stories of the left with our cups of strong tea.
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Radical Women will be officially launched on Saturday, July 18 from 2-4pm. The event starts with speeches at Apex Park at 2pm followed by a procession to the Union Theatre. All welcome. |
That preparedness to hold the line and speak up has continued through the generations, with my children, and others of their generation, all becoming active unionists.
Despite being in Australia for 47 of her 86 years, Granny never lost her Scottish accent. At family parties she would recite Robbie Burns' Tam o' Shanter from memory – all 228 lines of it. Many a Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) was whiled away with songs and poems, another family tradition that has endured.
Wonthaggi has a unique industrial and community history. Radical Women truly honours the spirit of those strong women and reminds us all of the power of collective action, particularly in tough times.
Artist Kay Abude has done a brilliant job of researching the history of the Auxiliary, with much assistance from the Wonthaggi Historical Society, and engaging local women in a series of practical workshops.
Despite being in Australia for 47 of her 86 years, Granny never lost her Scottish accent. At family parties she would recite Robbie Burns' Tam o' Shanter from memory – all 228 lines of it. Many a Hogmanay (New Year's Eve) was whiled away with songs and poems, another family tradition that has endured.
Wonthaggi has a unique industrial and community history. Radical Women truly honours the spirit of those strong women and reminds us all of the power of collective action, particularly in tough times.
Artist Kay Abude has done a brilliant job of researching the history of the Auxiliary, with much assistance from the Wonthaggi Historical Society, and engaging local women in a series of practical workshops.
Creative development and research workshop, at the Wonthaggi & District Historical Society,
January 2026
January 2026
Initially the project team worried they wouldn't have enough participants because the workshops were held during the summer holidays, so I said I would be happy to take part. In the end there was plenty of interest, so our family – my two daughters, my mother and I – shared two of the 10 available places.
It was a real pleasure to work creatively with my daughters Nicola and Corinn, my three-year-old granddaughter Nellie, and my mum, Doris Chambers – known to everyone as Doss. Mum is the wife of Agnes's youngest son, Alan (dec.), and the only remaining member of that generation of the Chambers family.
It was a real pleasure to work creatively with my daughters Nicola and Corinn, my three-year-old granddaughter Nellie, and my mum, Doris Chambers – known to everyone as Doss. Mum is the wife of Agnes's youngest son, Alan (dec.), and the only remaining member of that generation of the Chambers family.
Agnes died in 1969, but Nicola and Corinn grew up hearing stories of her and of the hardships and triumphs of those times. Working together across four generations gave the project an extra dimension for us.
One moment that sticks in my mind was our first workshop at the museum, marvelling over the Auxiliary's branch statement – the women's manifesto outlining the powerful reasons why women must organise.
One moment that sticks in my mind was our first workshop at the museum, marvelling over the Auxiliary's branch statement – the women's manifesto outlining the powerful reasons why women must organise.
We were fascinated to examine the archival material collected and preserved by the Historical Society. It was like opening a time capsule: seeing, and even holding, papers in Auntie Lyn's beautiful copperplate handwriting, reading recipes, and discovering lists of supplies collected for local families.
People have asked whether I'm proud of Agnes's achievements. "Proud" isn't really the word I would use because it suggests her achievements somehow reflect on me, when of course they don't.
What I do feel is a deep sense of connection – to Agnes as my ancestor, to the women who worked alongside us in the workshops, and to those remarkable women of the Auxiliary who built such a powerful collective. I'm grateful their story is now part of Wonthaggi's streetscape for everyone to see.
People have asked whether I'm proud of Agnes's achievements. "Proud" isn't really the word I would use because it suggests her achievements somehow reflect on me, when of course they don't.
What I do feel is a deep sense of connection – to Agnes as my ancestor, to the women who worked alongside us in the workshops, and to those remarkable women of the Auxiliary who built such a powerful collective. I'm grateful their story is now part of Wonthaggi's streetscape for everyone to see.
The trail blazers
March 21, 2023 - It would be easy to mistake them for a bunch of ladies who lunch, but these women were revolutionaries.
March 21, 2023 - It would be easy to mistake them for a bunch of ladies who lunch, but these women were revolutionaries.
| Radical Women 2026 Bass Coast Shire Council Public Art Commission Supported by the Victorian Government through the Community Support Fund By Kay Abude In collaboration with: Wendy Anderson, Jayne Benson, Lyndal Chambers, Doris Chambers, Susan Clark, Karli Duckett, Danica Miller, Barbara Moje, Fay Quilford, Stewart Russell, Corinn Strating, Nicola Strating, Brook Tayla, Amrita Taylor. Delivery partner: Tilt Industrial Design Archival images: The Wonthaggi and District Historical Society and the Chambers family. Additional photography: Kay Abude and Karli Duckett |  |