AT the age of 17, Castlemaine Secondary College co-captain Des Cook said he had grasped the significance of the sacrifices made by those whose lives were lost at war.
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“It isn’t about sacrificing your past or your present – to sacrifice yourself is to give up everything you could become,” he said.
He couldn’t help noticing, Des told attendees at the Anzac Day commemorative service in Castlemaine, that he was of an age similar to those soldiers from more than 100 years ago who served in the World War I.
“I can’t help but look at my friends, peers and myself and notice the enormous potential we all have to do so many wonderful and amazing things in the world,” he said.
“It is in seeing this potential that I finally understand how much those whose lives were lost at war truly sacrificed.
“All those incredible ideas and talents that were never acted upon, the families that were never formed, the potential that was never realised.
“All of it gone, so that we may have the chance they never had.”
More coverage: Your guide to Anzac Day 2018 in Bendigo and central Victoria
The gratitude of the Castlemaine community was evident in its Anzac Day services this morning.
Beverley Beattie attended both the dawn service and the proceedings at 9am.
In both instances, she said a large number of people gathered to pay their respects.
Of particular pride was the involvement of both the Scouts and the Guides in the ceremony during the dawn service.
“They did a fantastic job, they really did,” Beverley said.
“They were a credit.”
Community was at the heart of the 9am service in Castlemaine, which was staged outside the outside the RSL building on Mostyn Street.
The musical talents of children from two of the local primary schools featured early in the program, with performances by both Castlemaine Primary School and St Mary’s Primary School.
A combined pipe band played a rousing rendition of Amazing Grace, while singer Emma Sayer led attendees in the hymns.
The serenity of today’s service, on an idyllic autumn morning in Castlemaine, was a world away from the division sweeping the community 100 years earlier – division prompted by a plebiscite on compulsory military service.
Guest speaker Joyce Sanders provided an account of the historical context of the day and the link between Castlemaine and Villers-Bretonneux.
Castlemaine Secondary College co-captain Nioka Mellick Cooper said there were still men, women and children “living the horrors of a modern war”.
With their good fortune at living in the ‘lucky country’ in mind, she and Des expressed their gratitude to those who had served their country.
“Today, like every Anzac day before and after this, I say thank you,” Des said.
“Thank you to those who have died at war so I can live out my potential, so that I can live the life they never could. For all those soldiers, they never got that chance”.
Recognising years of service
LOCKWOOD SOUTH resident Neal Douglas was among the veterans in attendance at Castlemaine’s Anzac Day commemorative service.
The left side of his jacket was heavy with medals accrued during more than 20 years of service.
Mr Douglas said he was little over 19 years of age when he was drafted for national service in 1967.
In a few weeks, he will attend a commemorative service marking the 50th anniversary of the Battles at Fire Support Bases Coral and Balmoral.
Twenty-six Australians lost their lives during the fighting, according to the Australian Government’s Anzac Centenary website.
Mr Douglas went to Vietnam attached to the 3rd Battalion of The Royal Australian Regiment.
He was based in Queensland for much of his service.
“We decided to move back the area because of the climate,” Mr Douglas said.
He said the support available to veterans had improved in the years since he served.
“There are a lot more things for them, even employment-wise,” Mr Douglas said.
“None of that existed when we first came back.”
A club for ‘returned soldiers’ has been a part of the Castlemaine community for about 100 years, having been established in late 1917.
The MC at today’s service, Alan Lane, shared an insight into the history of the RSL based on press coverage from the era.
He said the foundation stone for the Castlemaine RSL building was laid several years after the club was formed, in February 1920.
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