“There’s not many ways we can say [thank you], but this is my way I can say it.”
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Those were the words of Derek Johns on honouring servicemen and casualties of war as he embarked on his 35th year playing the Last Post and the Reveille at Orange’s Anzac Day commemorations.
Curiously, Mr Johns said he felt more nervous playing the hallowed tunes on Wednesday than he did at the tender age of nine.
“Harry Sloggett, the band master, was right beside me and now he’s not here,” he said.
“This was the most important day of the year to him, it had to be spot on.”
VIDEO: Orange’s Dawn Service at Robertson Park ...
Mr Johns was one of several to add his talents to the dawn service.
Orange Anglican Grammar School’s Hamish Bracey read Matthew Toia’s poem about the Gallipoli landing, while Suzie Daugherty, Isabella Kane and Scarlett Gee sang the hymn Abide With Me and the New Zealand and Australian national anthems respectively.
The students said it was an honour to contribute to the service – Suzie said it was her first dawn service, while Isabella said it was a challenge learning Maori pronunciation.
“But it was a lot easier to sing in Maori because the anthem was written for that language and the English was introduced later,” she said.