The Horsham community gathered in their hundreds at the 2024 ANZAC Day services to honour the fallen and remember that all veterans pay with their lives one way or another; some pay all at once on the battlefield, while others pay the cost of living with the memories.
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The Memorial Service was preceded by a solemn March from the RSL in MacLachlan Street to the Cenotaph in Sawyer Park, a symbolic journey past the former Cenotaph site in front of the Aquatic Centre.
HRCC Mayor Robyn Gulline and Lt David Herbert, both guest speakers at the following service, took the salute.
My Dad was 16 years old when he went to war.
"My Dad was 16 years old when he enlisted in WW II; he didn't have to prove how old he was," said Bev Hiatt. "His two brothers had gone, so he thought he couldn't stay home with them away at war, so he joined the RAAF," she said.
"And my grandmother waved goodbye to three of her sons; they came back, but war had changed them," she said.
Horsham College students Sienna Walsgott and Malachy O'Brien, St Brigid's College students Tom Luke and Ulani Hobbs, HTLC Rebekah Wundke and Alannah Johns, and Horsham Special School Ella Massey and Aaron Tanner read letters from the front sent home to loved ones.
During the service, Mc'd by Gareth Lane, the HMAS Horsham Bell rang out to honor veterans lost in the past year.
"We sent many of our farming boys to war," said Chris Leske. "They were strong, worked hard, could shoot straight, and were resilient."
"Some families lost more than one son. It changed families and communities, and so I come every year. Some years, I march, too. Our family takes turns marching to honor our family members who served," he said.
A poem recited by Natalie Driller, The Vietnam Vet, commemorated the 50th Anniversary of Australian Troops' departure from Vietnam.
Horsham College Malachy O'Brien and the National Anthem of New Zealand and Australia.
Small Ship Campaign honoured
A wreath was laid in memory of the Small Ships that protected Australia during World War II.
The crafts were varied: schooners, ketches, trawlers, tugs, ferries, barges, fishing boats, and even a paddle streamer. The only criteria were that they had a shallow draft suitable for navigating the uncharted reef-strewn coastline of New Guinea.
Approximately 3000 men and one woman served on the small ship campaign; they were small, maneuverable, and could outrun the larger frigates. Many of the crew were those who had not passed a medical or, for one reason or another, had not been accepted into the regular forces but nevertheless played an important part in the Pacific campaign.
Lest We Forget.
