Occasional light showers didn’t dampen the mood of commemoration at the Anzac Dawn Service at Verrierdale. It was a solemn and important Noosa hinterland moment repeated across the shire and in thousands of towns, cities and rural communities as Australians came together to honour those who gave their lives in war.
Piper Mike McDonald played the lament Flowers of the Forest,” followed by prayer and a poem. Noosa Chorale sang “Abide With Me” and our national anthem plus that of New Zealand. Schoolchildren and local group leaders laid wreaths and The Ode was read by retired RAAF Flight Lieutenant Mark Lloyd.
Guest speaker, retired RAAF Group Captain Greg Ison, recalled he was just eight years old when he went to his first Anzac Day march in Sydney in the mid 1950’s.
“I was amazed at the size of the march and was overcome with feelings of excitement and pride but didn’t know why.
“Later as a 19-year-old at a family dinner in Port Moresby I heard veterans of the PNG campaign talk about their experiences and their lost mates. It was then I realised what the Anzac spirit was all about.”
He said, “One hundred and ten years ago today 16,000 Australians and New Zealanders, landed on the Gallipoli Peninsula at what has become known as ANZAC Cove. The Australians were the first to land with the New Zealanders landing later that day.
“We can only imagine what these mostly young soldiers were thinking as they huddled in the boats, being towed ashore. Excitement, anxiety, fear and anticipation would have been forefront in their minds, and some even thinking about their loved ones at home, a long, long way away. They would not have been aware of strategically why they were there and little did they realise the carnage that would follow, with over 11,000 ANZAC deaths and nearly 25,000 wounded during the eight-month campaign.
“They also would not have realised the legacy they would create — overcoming great adversity, sticking by your mates and getting the job done. We gather just before dawn because they did and, as promised, we have carried on that tradition ever since as a collective act of remembrance, gratitude and reflection.
He said: “We don’t come to glorify war, but simply to recognise the sacrifice, commitment and unselfish devotion by those men and women who served so valiantly for their country and what they believed in, so much so that many knowingly went to their deaths.
“We are here to also remind ourselves that we value who we are and the freedoms we possess. To acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of those who contributed so much in shaping the identity of this nation and in giving us the freedom and quality of life that we enjoy today.
“We are one of the world’s most culturally diverse nations with almost half of all households having one or both parents born overseas. Yet the spirit of the ANZACs and their values of courage, mateship and honour are accepted as universal values that have united people from all backgrounds.”
Later in the morning hundreds of people lined Maple Street, Cooroy, for the Cooroy-Pomona RSL Subbranch Anzac Day march.
Brigadier Mark Armstrong (who was also guest speaker) and Naval Commander Josh Fearnley took the salute at the march led by veterans and the Noosa Pipe Band the march was joined by veteran families and students from surrounding schools, many wearing the medals of their ancestors.
At the Anzac Commemorative Service at Eumundi, following their march, Able Seaman Patricia Geelan (retired) was guest speaker and the Ode was read by Group Captain Ison.
