Lest We Forget: Anzac Day 2014

by Darren Davies, Rainbow Beach RSL Sub Branch

April is one of our busiest months each year as we prepare for Rainbow Beach Anzac Day ceremonies.   It is a day for reflection and celebration. We honour those that served and many that paid ultimately by sacrifice, we also celebrate and enjoy the freedoms that we all enjoy today.

The Rainbow Beach RSL Sub Branch would like to thank all those community businesses and  citizens that recently supported and contributed towards our Anzac Day raffles by a great variety of prize donations.  All proceeds will benefit the Surf Life Saving Nippers, Rainbow State School and other organisations.  For all that have assisted us on the lead up to Anzac Day and during Anzac Day Services, without you, we would struggle to conduct those services, thank you.

We wish to congratulate Year 7 student Samuel Sharman, for winning the 2014 Anzac Day Essay Competition “Women at War”.  Every year it’s a tough contest to judge as there are many great entries by the year 7 students, all students should be proud by what they submitted.

This year we have applied for Government fu

nded community grants programs for Rainbow Beach.  There is a new project for our local school as with improvements towards existing infrastructure at our public area of remembrance, cenotaph and surrounds.

Anzac Day 2015 will be the 100^th year, the Centenary of the landing of our troops at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli.   We know there will be many ceremonies across the nation that will put extra efforts into more flamboyant Services and improvements to existing infrastructure, we at Rainbow Beach will certainly play our part as we do every year to remember and honour those that fell before us.  Lest we forget.

 

RAINBOW BEACH RSL Sub Branch – May Report

ANZAC Day Services were very successful this year at Rainbow Beach. We estimate that the numbers in attendance for Dawn Service at around 450 and over 600 for the 2^nd Service, the march at 10am.

A Sub Branch raffle held at the Surf Club was a lot of fun on the day as prizes included Island tours and a family weekend at Fraser Island Eurong Resort and up to 42 prizes donated by generous locals and Rainbow Beach businesses. At the end of the day $1,385 in ticket sales was collected for the Rainbow Beach Surf Lifesaving nippers. We hope this contributes towards some new gear for this important part of our community. We wish to thank all those contributing businesses towards this successful cause and much needed funds back into our local community.

At the Dawn Service, Jamie Lee Griffiths, grand-daughter of Padre Bruce Dorman (sub branch member) bugled the Last Post & Reveille to a stirred up early crowd. It is always a highlight to hear the Last Post echo out across our headland at 4.28am. As daylight arrived we thought we may be in for a wet day but thankfully it soon cleared up to give us clear skies to make way for the second Service starting with the march to the Cenotaph.

The school choir sang beautifully for us. The F/18 Super Hornet flyover was as usual, not late, and a spectacular sight as always. RAAF 1 SQN FLT LT Markham presented us a moving speech in legacy of the spirit of the ANZACS. Afterwards, on behalf of RAAF 1 SQN, he accepted a beautiful rosewood plaque from Sub Branch President Joe Casey. This plaque was for 10 years of RAAF 1 SQN attending Rainbow Beach ANZAC Day Services.

To the Rainbow Beach citizens of our beautiful community, thank you for attending either or both Services and to all the volunteers who assisted us on the day, we thank you very much. Our Sub Branch now has a website, for more information please visit; www.rainbowbeachrsl

The next Sub Branch community Service to be held will be commemorating Vietnam Veterans Day at 11am on 18^th August, at the town Cenotaph. All are welcome.

Darren Davies
Secretary
Rainbow Beach RSL – Sub Branch
www.rainbowbeachrsl.com