General News
17 August, 2023
Community marks Vietnam Veterans Day
Today marks Vietnam Veterans Day, a day of commemoration and reflection on the 50th year since Australia’s involvement in the conflict ended. Local Vietnam veterans held a small dawn service at the Maryborough Cemetery at 7 am this morning...
Today marks Vietnam Veterans Day, a day of commemoration and reflection on the 50th year since Australia’s involvement in the conflict ended.
Local Vietnam veterans held a small dawn service at the Maryborough Cemetery at 7 am this morning, placing poppies at the graves of known Vietnam veterans who have died since the war.
Veterans also held a small mid-morning service at the Phillips Gardens memorial last Sunday.
It’s a time of reflection for local veterans, including Jim Dewar, who said memories both good and bad come to mind.
“We all reflect on different occasions and different memories we have from over there,” he said.
“You think about the guys you knew and lost over there and guys we’ve lost since — in our own sub branch, we’ve lost just too many.
“Some days you just have to put your best foot forward, with our sub branch we’ve got plenty of people we can call on if we need to have a coffee or a yarn and that’s of great importance.
“If you’ve got issues you can get it off your chest and get some advice and help.”
More than 60,000 Australians served in Vietnam, over 3000 were wounded and 523 gave their lives in the longest conflict Australians were involved in during the 20th Century.
January 11 this year marked the 50th anniversary of Australia’s involvement in Vietnam coming to an end, and to commemorate the anniversary, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs produced a commemorative medallion and certificate.
The medallions feature the Commonwealth Coat of Arms with ‘Vietnam War’ inscribed at the top and ‘Australia Remembers’ at the bottom, with the years 1962-73 and words of thanks on the reverse side.
Maryborough RSL sub branch vice president Ben Holscher is among those veterans to have received a medal and certificate and said it was a meaningful gesture.
“The medals are a commemoration of the cessation of the Vietnam War and come with a certificate of thanks,” he said.
“I think it’s a nice gesture, it’s something we can pass on to our kids.”
