The 50 Year History of the Polish Community in Ashfield
Date & Time: 29th October 2017. 2:00pm – 4:00pm
Venue: The Ashfield Polish Club. 73-75 Norton Street Ashfield
The Polish Club hosted a gathering of about 40+ members and friends of our Society to a special afternoon at the Polish Club in Norton Street. The Club and the Polish community have been a significant feature of Ashfield since WW2. Eva Habijanec and several other members of the Club spoke about how a large number of ‘displaced’ Polish people gathered to live near to Ashfield in the late 1940s and 50s. It was this group that finally established the Polish Club. Eva’s parents came to Australia separately from Poland and Siberia. She spoke about how her father like many post war refugees, initially worked on the Snowy Mountains Scheme. Her mother worked at ‘Kims’ on the Beach at Toowoon Bay before they met and married. Eva and other presenters spoke about how important the Polish Club was and how the Polish community had such a profound influence on them, as children of Polish refugees.
After the presentations we had a chance to look around the facilities of the Polish Club. The meals served in the Club’s restaurant and the delicatessen all keep aspects of Polish culture alive and well in Ashfield.