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There's a club for that, with Isis Jordan

Welcome to The Nugget, a 24k gold newsletter about Castlemaine's people and events

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The Nugget
May 15, 2026

★ There’s a club for that, with Isis Jordan ★

Isis Jordan, everyone’s favourite social prescriber.

There are lots of ways to win at life. One option is to try everything. Spend Friday night dressed as a jellyfish at a David Attenborough-themed fundraiser, teach ballroom dancing during the week, then give pickleball a crack.

For Isis Jordan, that tendency toward trying things and bringing other people along with her has become a dream job.

On Saturday, 16 May, Isis is helping bring 30-ish clubs and community groups together for Town Open Day at the Goods Shed, a giant community expo-meets-orientation-week designed to help people find their thing.

“It really reminds me of O Week at university,” Isis says. “I loved going around and joining every single club and then only actually going to one.”

That one, in her case, was the rock-climbing club at Queensland University. She’s still connected to friends she made there. Walking into Tortoise for this interview, she immediately bumped into someone from that same climbing crew. Hi, Effie!

Town Open Day is built around the idea that this sort of thing matters more than people sometimes realise. There’ll be choirs, music workshops, food stalls, silent disco tours, ukuleles, roller skates, birds, backgammon, croquet, sustainability groups and enough community organisations to make you wonder whether anyone in Castlemaine is actually home on weeknights.

Groups already locked in include the Maine Rollers, BirdLife Castlemaine, Mount Alexander Sustainability Group, Nalderun Education Aboriginal Corporation, Friends of the Box Ironbark Forest and enough choirs to turn the Goods Shed into a scene from Pitch Perfect.

Mediocre Melodies will open the day with a performance and beginner-friendly music workshop where people can bring along whatever instrument they’ve got at home and learn a tune note by note.

“We couldn’t fit everybody in,” Isis says. “There’s so many clubs in Castlemaine and across Mount Alexander Shire.”

Town Open Day is a NAB-sponsored collab between Castlemaine Community House, Mount Alexander Shire and Dhelkaya Health, and the brainchild of Get Connected. 

Isis is the driving force behind the Get Connected Mount Alexander social prescribing program. Social prescribing is the idea that alongside medication or therapy, people might also benefit from dancing, singing, walking or making things with other people.

Get Connected participants work with Isis to find activities that are meaningful and interesting to them.

They might join the Silver Tops dance classes at Movement Zone, a dog walking group or a chatty café. Isis works hard to line up someone to meet them at the door so walking into a room full of strangers feels less terrifying.

“Some of our local groups have designated welcome people who really know what it is to make someone feel included,” Isis says.

Sitting here in 2026, it feels obvious Isis was always going to end up connecting people to community. Five years ago, not so much.

Originally from Queensland, she moved to the region to work on her aunties’ goat farm at Sutton Grange, where they ran Holy Goat cheese. What began as an adventure eventually turned into a lesson in rural isolation.

“If you’re not living in Castlemaine, in my experience, you can end up feeling kind of left out,” she says.

She remembers how easy it was to miss things entirely when you lived outside town: no posters, no word-of-mouth, no accidental run-ins. During COVID, she realised farming probably wasn’t the long-term plan.

“I realised that I actually don’t want to be a farmer.”

Instead, she enrolled in the Loddon Mallee Community Leadership Program, which she describes as “life saving” at a point where she felt directionless.

“I didn’t have a background in social work or community development,” she says. “What I’m actually good at is being with people and having fun.”

That realization, combined with mentorship from Community House’s Kez Jennings and former manager Martyn Shaddick, eventually led her into community connector work.

“They just watered me like a little seed,” she says.

The role also draws on her own experiences with mental health challenges and isolation.

“We all have challenges all the time,” she says. “And it’s so much better if you do talk about it.”

These days, her own social prescription includes teaching ballroom dance classes at Guildford Hall, joining a meditation group at West End Hall, craft nights with friends, costume-making, gardening and training for a 20km Coast Trek fundraiser with her parents.

Town Open Day will also include practical support for people who might otherwise struggle to attend, including community transport options for rural residents.

“There’s going to be a transport table where you can learn about all the transport that is available currently in our shire and information for people who might want to volunteer to be drivers,” Isis says.

Amid all the ukuleles, choirs and possible rogue pool tables, the day is designed to make it easier for people to find each other.

Or even join a club that changes their life.

Town Open Day runs Saturday, 16 May at the Goods Shed, Castlemaine. Entry is free. Expect clubs, performances, workshops, come-and-try activities, food stalls and a very high chance of leaving with at least one new hobby.

  • Find your people and a new hobby at Town Open Day at The Goods Shed, Sat, 16 May, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

  • Check out Isis and Julia’s ballroom dance class at the Guildford Hall

  • Follow D-Tour Silent Disco to find out where you can catch Ice Ice Baby (Isis), Will-e Dance and San FranDisco next

  • Find your people and a new hobby at Town Open Day at The Goods Shed, Sat, 16 May, 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

❀ Media that expands us ❀

Ramona Mag has released a print anthology. Do yourself a favour and pick up a copy.

It’s available at Corner Store Merchants and online. Ramona Mag is a grassroots feminist magazine produced on Djaara country. This anthology features stories about identity, motherhood, disability, culture, creativity, advocacy and Heated Rivallllryyy.  

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Hi, hi! If you would like to write for the Nugget, I'd love to chat with ya.

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If you are keen and want to throw around some ideas, drop us a line at [email protected]. xx