W is for War Memorials/Museums

Yesterday was ANZAC Day in Australia, a day during which the nation commemorates the victims of war and recognises the role of our armed forces. The day commences with a Dawn Service at the local cenotaph to remember the ill-fated campaign where Allied troops landed on the narrow beaches of the Gallipoli peninsula during WW1. This is generally followed by a march past, followed by lunch and other  “festivities.”

Cleveland, Qld

Australian regional memorials have long been at the heart of community commemoration of our servicemen and women.

When driving through most Australian towns, large or small, you can almost always find a war memorial, often at the town centre. They come in the form of granite obelisks, memorial gates, statues and more. They are found in parks, hospitals, post offices, swimming pools and halls. They include honour rolls found in bowling clubs, schools, town halls and other community buildings. Statues of mostly First World War soldiers, known as ‘Digger memorials’, are also a distinctive feature in regional towns.

Surat, Qld

There is a website collating these memorials in Australia. Go here :                       https://placesofpride.awm.gov.au/memorials

I admit to being a total sucker for our country towns. Their buildings, cemeteries, museums and war memorials offer so much more in the way of history than anything printed in the travel brochures or offered at Tourist Information Centres.

During a short road trip last week to see the Dingo Fence, and bonus find the  Rabbit Fence which I will share another time, we visited the Miles Historical Village on the Western Downs. Of particular interest was the War Museum loaded with local information pertinent to Miles in which I learnt that the Americans during WW2 established six artillery storage facilities near Miles, one being a current mine site which on occasion has unearthed refuse artillery. 

Oh, how this kind of useless information fuels my soul……

It must be an age thing but for the first time in twenty years I was unable to crawl out of bed at 4am to greet the dawn. I set the alarm alright, but just couldn’t face it. Instead, I listened to Vera Lynn for the day and read an article about a newly erected monument in rural Blackall, Queensland, of WW1 nurse Sister Greta Norman Towner, “as a reminder of the significant contribution Australian women in service have made to the nation.” Interestingly, this monument stands in the park opposite the statue of her brother Lieutenant Edgar Thomas Towner, VC MC.

And for those Aussie readers with a few free hours on their hands the AWM is calling for volunteers to help preserve war diaries and records within their collection by transcribing. It’s easy and I failed typing in a business course. Go here:https://transcribe.awm.gov.au/

#A-ZChallenge 2024

Australian Trivia

A Different ANZAC Day

Today’s ANZAC Day Dawn Service has been a very different one with self isolation the order of the day. No gatherings at local Cenotaphs, no Gunpowder breakfasts, no soldiers marching proudly along the high street with their service medals on their chest.

This morning we took to our driveways and balconies together listening to the service on our devices from the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, together listening to the Ode, the bugles playing across the suburbs. Together we said Lest We Forget.

Despite the social distancing there have been aspects of this ANZAC Day that have made it special. Different though special.

Teddy Bears in windows were accompanied by red poppies crafted by Little People as part of homeschooling. There was evidence of poppies tied to letterboxes and one front garden was a sea of poppies made from red plastic plates. Not solemn perhaps but a simple lesson in how to pass on our history.

Last night I participated in an online clay poppy candle holder class and slept under the stars in the back yard as a fundraiser for Wounded Heroes who at a grassroots level assist our most marginalised exservice personnel and their families.

The local Museum has not only shared the history of our early pioneers who went to War, but also recipes that were favourites in days such as ANZAC Biscuits and Damper On A Stick which I’ll be having with barbeque.

Stories shared online have been numerous with so many causing a tear in the eye. The 100 year old Kokoda Track Digger who has never missed an Anzac Day being given a personal drive by in a WW2 jeep, the Changi Concert Band pianist who at 98 played alongside a professional brass band at his nursing home, and Captain Tom Murray. Captain Murray who not only raised millions to assist battling Brits, and who received a letter of thanks from 104 year old Vera Lynn. Pass me the tissues, will you please.

There seems to have been so much more this ANZAC Day – or maybe we’ve just had more time to listen. There have been concerts streamed, there has been poetry and artwork shared, there has been so much connectedness involved.

For those who have gone before us, and for those who follow : Lest We Forget.

ANZAC Day

Dawn Services across Australia have been cancelled due to the current worldwide health situation.

ANZAC Day, April 25th, commemorates the campaign by Australian, New Zealand and other Allied troops in 1915 to capture the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey. The Dawn Service forms a major part of this day with thousands gathering in the early hours – the time of the original Gallipoli landing – at memorials across the country to remember those who have served, or whom are serving, for the protection of our nation.

The Dawn Service, regardless of the number of attendees or whether being held in a small, rural township or at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, is a moving ceremony. Interestingly, in spite of the passing years the Dawn Service is gaining in popularity.

This year is a strange one. Droughts, Bushfires, Floods and…. everything else.

The son of a Vietnam Veteran recently put it out there that Australians could still attend a Dawn Service despite the fact that we’re all in social distance mode. It’s a concept that has gained momentum and now acceptance by the Returned Services League.

At 5:55am this Anzac Day Australians will be coming together to meet the new day, lighted candle in hand, on the footpaths outside their homes, or on their balconies. The Last Post will come across the radio.

Cop that Covid-19. We ain’t broke yet!

NOTE:

A little activity to keep the Little People (and myself) occupied :