The Rememberance Day ceremony in Gympie was a shambles. I was very upset about it and still am.
This year was sadly to be an EXTRA special occasion because one of our local servicemen had been killed/murdered in Afghanistan and his family were present and came up to lay a wreath at the ANZAC flame, after those laid by the official party. Now amongst their heartbreak and grief, the family of Corporal Ashley Birt will have memories of a
very average ceremony.
The whole thing was running ahead of time, then either the bugler didn't front or CD wouldn't work. Ode was recited, no Last Post and No Reveille to follow. The ceremony ended roughly FIVE MINUTES BEFORE 1100hrs. Then there was something that put a lump in my throat, a great number of the crowd stood still and waited for the town hall bells to ring at 11AM, then dispursed silently.
To add insult to injury, the memorial plaques of recently deceased ex-servicemen/women that were to be attached to the wall in our memorial lane were LOST in transit between Melbourne & Gympie, and had not been found by Rememberance Day. These were ordered by Gympie locals to honor their family members. Corporal Birt's plaque has a seperate and special place on the main entrance to the Memorial Lane, and this plaque was not among those lost, thank God!
Anyone passing through Gympie, make sure you come see our Memorial Lane. It is lined with large murals made of individual pieces of hand painted & fired mosaic. From memory, I believe there are currently 12 of these, and plans are in place for future additions. We are extremely proud of this beautiful tribute!
Lessons will be learnt from this year and we will do better in 2012.
Lest We Forget