The Anzac Day ceremonies last week saw people from all ages and from all over the country pay tribute to fallen, former and current servicemen and women who fought for this country. At services in Galong, Wombat, Binalong, Wallendbeen, Harden, Murrumburrah and Jugiong, the largest crowds ever seen at Anzac Day services formed up around the cenotaphs and memorials of each town and village.
At Galong, 40 people turned out for the ceremony at the Memorial Hall at 5:30am, whilst in Harden, the size of the crowd at the Dawn Service was unprecedented. Tim O’Keeffe of the Returned Soldiers League described the turnout as “overwhelming”. “I couldn’t think of a better way of saying it,” said Tim. “This turnout would be more than some daytime services in previous years.”
Also attending the Dawn Service in Harden was David Watters, who attended the service with his family from Darwin and Perth. For them, the trek had special significance. “My father, Alfred Watters is originally from Harden, and was born at Cunningham Plains,” said David, “He fought at Gallipoli, and received the Military Medal for rescuing his wounded and dead comrades, whilst under fire, for thirty-six hours straight.” David was at the service with his wife Valerie, daughters Desiree and Natalie, granddaughters Shae, Grace and Blissy, and Robert Paarson of the Nelson Bay Returned Soldiers’ League.
Each year, as the ranks of veterans deplete, more and more of the younger generations have taken their place. That much was evident at the 11:00am service at Harden. The younger relatives of veterans wore the medals of their forebears, marching in rank and file with veterans of Korea, Vietnam and former National Servicemen.
The most dominant feature of the march to Newson Park was the presence of school children. Children from Murrumburrah Public School, Murrumburrah High School, Trinity Catholic School, Hennessy Catholic College, and even Jugiong Public School formed the bulk of the parade, with some holding the pictures of their grandfathers and great grandfathers who served. Many more had the medals of their relatives pinned to their chest.
The service at the Light Horse Memorial in Harden also saw its largest ever attendance. Again, school children were ever-present, with Trinity School students forming the choir, and older students reading. One of those students who read was Eldon Rowan, who wore the dog tags of his great grandfather, Jack Price, who served in the Army during the Second World War.
The presence of so many children and young people in the parade was a comforting one. Many had commented on the day that there were more school children at the Anzac Services last week then there were at the 50 year anniversary services in 1965. To all the school children at the services, well done. You are a credit to yourselves, your schools, your families, your community and to those who fought for this country. You should all be proud.
For many children, the horrors of the Great War are beyond their level of comprehension, but for some, the realisation of the true nature of the fighting had quite an impact. On Friday the 24th of April, Murrumburrah High School (MHS) and Murrumburrah Public School (MPS) held a joint memorial service at Newson Park. At that service, the Vice-Captain of MHS put things into perspective. “Hands up if you are in Years 9-12?…1 in 5 of you would have fallen for your country in battle and 1 in 2 of you would return home injured.” These are statistics that hit home, not just for Zac, but for all those who were in attendance.
A re-enactment to sound effects and music was also performed by the Year 9 Drama class at that service, and very positively received. “The re-enactment was brilliantly done,” said Vietnam Veteran, Nic Nadycz. “It’s hard to put things like that into perspective when you haven’t been through it yourself.”
Nic believes it is important that children understand the significance of Anzac Day and what it represents. “Young people need to get the message,” said Nic. “We [veterans] are all getting older.”
Contrasted by the school uniforms were those of that generation that experienced the hardships of the Second World War. In Jugiong, Jim Sheahan, soon to celebrate his 90th birthday, stood in reflection after laying a wreath at the foot of the memorial gates without any assistance. While his family and friends looked on proudly, his bowed head with his hat pressed to his chest spoke volumes about what that day meant to him.
Present at most of the services in the Shire last week was the Light Horse Troop. Sat atop their mounts behind the Cenotaphs, the Light Horse Troop represented the intrinsic link that the Light Horse has with Harden Shire. The discipline of the Troopers, especially of a young, pint-sized Trooper without a horse, was exemplary. Their hard work and dedication is to be commended to the highest extent possible.
Anzac Day was originally conceived to commemorate the Gallipoli Landings, the largest amphibious assault in history at that time, which became the first significant taste of combat for Australian soldiers during a war that was ‘to end all wars’. It may be sad to some then, that the bulk of the medals represented were not from the Great War, but from wars that were never meant to follow the suffering in the trenches of the Western Front and the deserts of the Sinai and Palestine. Conflicts such as the Second World War, Korea, Vietnam, and more recently, Iraq and Afghanistan, were represented by veterans and their descendants.
The sadness of the following conflicts is superseded by the unity and pride that the community displayed. As the veterans and descendants marched to the Cenotaphs and memorials, all one was able to hear was the sound of applause. It is indeed truly sad that the ‘war to end all wars’ was not so, and although we may never fully understand the experiences of our veterans, the succeeding generations will always be there to honour those that put their lives on the line in all of Australia’s wars.
Lest We Forget.
Pictured are Jessica Head, Isaac Forde and Amelia Pavitt – saluting those who served – at the Harden Morning Service at Newson Park.
