REMEMBERING THE SACRIFICE: Ex-Service personnel and Orange residents turned out in freezing conditions to mark Vietnam Veterans day on Saturday. Photos: STEVE GOSCH 0818vietvets
APPALLING weather conditions did not deter Orange residents who stood in silence at the Cenotaph on Saturday to remember those who served in the Vietnam War.
Ex-service personnel and their families, members of the serving forces, school students and Orange residents braved what organisers said were the worst weather conditions in many years for the ceremony.
Jeremy Wallace delivered the address, focusing on the Royal Australian Air Force’s involvement in the conflict from 1964, when the military warhorse, the Caribou was brought into service, followed by helicopters the following year.
Mr Wallace spoke of the involvement of the crews of the Canberra bombers, with his poignant closing remarks relating to the sacrifice made by all those who served in the war during a time of conscription.
“Remember for your tomorrow we gave our today,” he said.
Kinross Wolaroi School cadet Arabella Jongensen-Hull also spoke to the crowd, relaying the importance of the Australian nurses who served in the war.
“For them, dealing with the type of injuries they had to treat, it was very harrowing, as it was something they had never been confronted with before,” she said.
Reverend Canon Frank Hetherington delivered the prayer, calling on all those present to remember those who served in Vietnam, and blessing their families.
Master of Ceremonies was Graham Scott who delivered the Ode of Remembrance.
Bugler Derek Johns and Piper Don Peck added to the solemnity of the occasion playing the Last Post, Reveille and the National Anthem.
Vietnam Veterans Day is traditionally held on the day in which 18 Australian soldiers died in the Battle of Long Tan.
During the war, 500 Australian soldiers lost their lives, however, the impact of the war continues to affect veterans and their families.
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