Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.)

The Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.) is an incorporated community organisation representing and serving the Macedonian community in Western Australia. Its community centre is located at the corner of Albert Street and Macedonia Place in North Perth, Western Australia, and it operates under an Australian Business Number (ABN 16 547 028 369). The organisation is structured around a home committee and a range of sub-groups, and it maintains a public-facing website at macedoniawa.com.au. The organisation's activities span cultural, sporting, social and welfare domains. Its website lists soccer, football, cricket, netball and pool among its sporting activities, alongside folkloric groups, a Macedonian Youth Club, and branches or affiliated groups in Manjimup, Geraldton and Wanneroo. It also runs cultural and Macedonian language classes, including K-12 classes and a class for adults, and hosts community functions, picnics and social events. The community centre and function room are available for hire, and the organisation is associated with the church of St Nicholas (Sv. Nikola) and with FK Makedonija and the Goce Delchev dance group. A notable communications activity is Macedonian-language radio. According to the organisation's website, after the Ethnic Broadcasting Association ceased broadcasting its community announcements, the community negotiated with 103.3 Mac FM to present news via that station. The community program airs on Sundays from 12:00pm to 1:00pm and Wednesdays from 6:00pm to 7:00pm. The website also carries sections on Macedonian history, news, cooking, human rights, and a 'Preferred Business Contacts' directory, as well as a 'Young Macedonian Achievers Award'. The organisation's published history notes that Macedonians have been arriving in Australia since the late 1880s, initially through the pečalba (seasonal labour migration) system, with major early waves linked to tighter US immigration policies in 1924 and the Ioannis Metaxas regime in 1936. By 1921 there were 50 Macedonians in Australia, and by 1940 the number had reached over 6,000, mostly from Lerin, Kostur and Bitola. Post-WWII and Greek Civil War migration, and later Yugoslav policies encouraging overseas work, brought further waves, with the peak in the early 1970s, settling in industrial districts such as Wollongong, Newcastle, Thomastown and Rockdale, and in isolated areas such as Port Hedland. The Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.) is part of this broader Macedonian-Australian organisational landscape in Western Australia.

The Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.) is an incorporated community organisation in Western Australia. Its published history situates it within the broader story of Macedonian migration to Australia, which the organisation traces back to the late 1880s. Early migration was shaped by pečalba, a tradition in which the man of the family (the pečalbari) worked overseas to earn money and then returned home, which restricted permanent settlement. The organisation's history cites Peter Hill in identifying two major early waves of Macedonian migration: one following the United States' tougher immigration policies in 1924, and another following the rise of the Ioannis Metaxas regime in 1936. By 1921 there were 50 Macedonians in Australia; by 1940 the number had reached over 6,000, the majority from Lerin, Kostur and Bitola. After World War II and the Greek Civil War, many Macedonians from Greece — referred to as Aegean Macedonians — came to Australia and settled in areas including Richmond and Footscray. Later, when Yugoslav policies encouraged citizens to work overseas, many ethnic Macedonians within Yugoslavia left for Australia, with the peak of this migration in the early 1970s. They settled mainly in industrial districts, particularly Wollongong and Newcastle, the Melbourne suburb of Thomastown and the Sydney suburb of Rockdale. Many Macedonians from Yugoslavia also settled in isolated parts of Australia such as Port Hedland. Most of these immigrants came from agricultural backgrounds. The Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.) operates from the Macedonian Community Centre of WA at the corner of Albert Street and Macedonia Place in North Perth, Western Australia. The organisation is structured around a home committee and a set of sub-groups and affiliated bodies. Its website lists a committee, past committees, a gallery, membership information, and a wide range of activities: soccer, football, cricket, netball and pool; folkloric groups; a Macedonian Youth Club; branches or groups in Manjimup, Geraldton and Wanneroo; hall and function room hire; a church; cultural and language classes; coming events; a social page; sport; ladies', pensioners', business and professionals' and youth club sections; a Young Macedonian Achievers Award; human rights; Macedonian history; Macedonian news; Macedonian cooking; and preferred business contacts. The community centre is associated with the church of St Nicholas (Sv. Nikola), FK Makedonija and the Goce Delchev dance group, as referenced in the organisation's Macedonian-language radio announcements. The organisation runs Macedonian-language classes, including K-12 classes and a class for adults, held on Tuesdays from 4:45pm to 6:00pm and Thursdays. It also maintains a Macedonian-language radio presence: after the Ethnic Broadcasting Association stopped broadcasting the community's announcements, the community negotiated with 103.3 Mac FM to present news via that station, with programs airing Sundays from 12:00pm to 1:00pm and Wednesdays from 6:00pm to 7:00pm. The organisation operates under ABN 16 547 028 369, and its centre manager is John Donev.

• Macedonians begin arriving in Australia in the late 1880s, initially through the pečalba labour migration system.

• By 1921 there were 50 Macedonians in Australia.

• A major early wave of Macedonian migration follows the United States' tougher immigration policies.

• A further early wave follows the rise of the Ioannis Metaxas regime.

• By 1940 the number of Macedonians in Australia had reached over 6,000, mostly from Lerin, Kostur and Bitola.

• Migration peaks in the early 1970s as Yugoslav policies encourage citizens to work overseas.

• The Macedonian Community of WA negotiates with 103.3 Mac FM to broadcast its community program after the Ethnic Broadcasting Association ceases its announcements.

A community and cultural organisation serving Macedonian-Australians in Western Australia, providing cultural, sporting, social and welfare services from its North Perth community centre.

• Macedonian Community Centre of WA

  Community centre at the corner of Albert Street and Macedonia Place, North Perth WA 6006, available for hall and function room hire.

• Macedonian language classes

  K-12 classes and a class for adults, held Tuesdays 4:45pm–6:00pm and Thursdays.

• Macedonian radio program on 103.3 Mac FM

  Community news and information broadcast Sundays 12:00pm–1:00pm and Wednesdays 6:00pm–7:00pm.

• Sports clubs

  Soccer, football, cricket, netball and pool activities, including FK Makedonija.

• Folkloric groups

  Folkloric dance groups including the Goce Delchev group.

• Young Macedonian Achievers Award

  An award recognising young Macedonian achievers.

1. 1Welcome to the Macedonian Community of WA (Inc.)macedoniawa.com.au
2. 2Macedonian Historymacedoniawa.com.au
3. 3Macedonian Community of W.A. (Inc.) — Wikidatawikidata.org