WINTER 2013
RSA SALUTES YOUNG ANZACS Two 12-year-old boys’ heroic rescue of a drowning man inspired the RNZRSA to honour them as 2013 Anzacs of the Year. Will White (centre) and Sergio Schuler (right) are pictured with Waikato/King Country/Bay of Plenty president Alex Pluck. Story – page 3 Photo: Mike Hill Photography
Technology
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Remembering
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Health/Well Being
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RSA Life
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Smaller, snazzier, swifter – smarter?
Many a reason leads to Gallipoli
Fatigue programme promises MS relief
RSA thrives with public exposure
Modern life’s a continual bombardment by gadgetry, technology and nan0secondsavers. But are we any smarter?
The 2015 Gallipoli centenary is very much on Anzac minds, RSA Review editor Dion Crooks put his ear to the ground in 2013.
A new programme helps people with multiple sclerosis deal and live with fatigue-induced tiredness.
A year ago, the Mt Wellington/Panmure RSA looked on the brink of closing. Now membership is booming and the future looks rosy.
Visit us online at www.rsa.org.nz
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RSA REVIEW • WINTER 2013
News The official publication of the Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association Volume 90 No. 2 Winter 2013 Published June 28, 2013
In this issue 02 News 04 National 06 On The Road 18 Remembering 28 Lost Trails 29 RSA Life 32 Classifieds 38 What’s New For RSA Review enquiries and subscriptions, contact: RSA Review Anzac House, 181 Willis Street PO Box 27 248, Wellington 6141 Phone 04 384 7994 Fax 04 385 3325 rsareview@rnzrsa.org.nz www.rsa.org.nz Last Post, What’s On and Lost Trails are placed in RSA Review as a free service. PUBLISHER: James Lynch Ph (03) 983 5500 james@waterfordpress.co.nz EDITOR: Dion Crooks Ph (03) 983 5505 dion@waterfordpress.co.nz
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‘nasty little WAR’ REcalled Karen Phelps
korean war commemoration – WHAT, WHERE, when
Coming very soon after World War 2 and then overshadowed by the Vietnam War, the Korean War has struggled to gain recognition from New Zealanders in general. But this has changed, judging from the number of commemorations planned to mark the 60th anniversary of the Korean War armistice on July 27, says New Zealand Korea Veterans’ Association national president Jim Newman. The association has made it a duty to remind people of the Korean War, he says. “It was a nasty little war. People served with honour and some lost their lives. We’ve brought it to the attention of New Zealand and we can now say it’s not a forgotten war any more.” Newman, who has visited South Korea a number of times since the war, was posted there from 1951-1952 at the age of 17. He was on the HMNZS Hawea, which patrolled Korea’s west coast to ensure that no North Korean ships ventured south and to assist pilots who were shot down. He returned in 1955 to serve for nine months with the HMNZS Kaniere. He was away from thick of the fighting, but personally knew people who lost their lives. And although the war featured prominently in media at the time, he remembers that it was quickly overshadowed by news of Vietnam. But the Korean War, from 1950-53, was significant for New Zealand. One of the first countries to answer the first United Nations call for assistance in Korea, on June 29, 1950, it maintained a significant presence there until 1957. New Zealand gunners played a vital role in Korea, particularly in the pivotal Battle of Kap’yong from April 23-25, 1951, when they supported 3 Battalion Royal Australian Regiment
New Zealand Korea Veterans’ Association branch commemorations and activities to mark the 60th anniversary of the armistice, include: July 7: Hamilton Luncheon, Combined Returned Services Club, 11am. July 13: Whanganui Luncheon, NZKVA Taranaki, Whanganui, Manawatu, ellington branches, Wanganui RSA, 11am. July 19: Christchurch Service, Papanui RSA followed by luncheon, 11am. July 20: Dunedin Luncheon, Tokyo Garden Restaurant, noon. July 24: Whangarei Luncheon, Whangarei RSA, 11am. July 24: Bay of Plenty Luncheon, Whakatane RSA, 11am.
July 26: Auckland Parade of vets and wreath-laying service, DoveMeyer Robinson Park, (Parnell Rose Gardens) 11am. July 27: Wellington Parade , wreath-laying ceremony, National War Memorial (governor general in attendance). July 27: Hawkes Bay Service, 11am, Hastings cenotaph, followed by visit to Hastings RSA. July 27: Blenheim Service, RSA section, Clubs of Marlborough, 10.30am, followed by luncheon. July 27: Invercargill Service at cenotaph, 11am, followed by luncheon. August 47: Otaki Unveiling of new memorial at Otaki Primary School, 10.30am, followed by luncheon.
in halting a Chinese advance towards Seoul. The Royal New Zealand Navy also had a significant role in the war, with its ships helping transport supplies from Japan to South Korea, and protecting South Korean-held islands. The New Zealand frigates completed eight tours of duty and altogether steamed 339,584 miles and fired 71,625 rounds of ammunition. The highest daily total of shells fired by New Zealand gunners on a single day was 10,000. New Zealand had 4700 troops (Kayforce) on the ground, and another 1300 involved in the Navy. Forty-five New Zealand personnel lost their lives, 79 were wounded, one was taken prisoner and held in North Korea for 18 months before being released. Jim Newman points out that the war continues – officially – which makes it significant
internationally: “If the United Nations hadn’t stopped them, the North Koreans might not have stopped but could have kept going to Japan and beyond,” he says. “A ceasefire has been signed,not a peace treaty.” He sees many synergies between South Korea and New Zealand, both small countries. “South Korea is about half the size of the South Island. But it’s now the tenth-biggest economy in the world. I have nothing but admiration for the South Korean people and what they have achieved. South Korea shows just what a small country can achieve.” Twenty-nine Korean War vets, chosen by ballot and funded by Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand, will go to the armistice commemorations in Korea in July. Newman attended the International Federation of Korean War Veterans’ Association conference in Seoul in June. “We stopped a communist advance. We allowed a country like South Korea to be free. The 60th anniversary of the ceasefire marks a job well done. We can stand proud and be very pleased with what we achieved.”
The Korean War continues – officially. A cease -fire has been signed, not a peace treaty.
Three RSA members recognised with Queen’s Service Medal The work of three RNZRSA membes – Charles Cooke (Mangawhai), Maureen Fenton (Hunterville) and Jim Newman (Whangarei) – was recognised through the award of Queens’ Service Medals this year. When Charles Cooke retired from the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 2005, he committed to getting “very involved in the affairs of returned servicemen”. He is a former secretary treasurer and committee member of the Hakaru & District Memorial RSA, and is now on the Whangarei RSA executive committee. He was an original member of the RNZRSA Affiliates Forum formed about eight years ago.. In addition, he is national president, secretary and chief executive of the RNZAF Association – and has been awarded a life-membership gold badge in 2012 and a silver badge for 10 years’ service. He is treasurer and on support committees for the Air Cadet League, and is an executive committee member and former national president of the King’s Empire Veterans (he is now Whangarei branch president. He has also been a director of the Museum of Transport and Technology, in Auckland. Maureen Fenton, 84, says the QSM is a great honour. During her 40 years in Hunterville, she has had wide involvement in the community’s life. She has a background in the police for seven years in the late 1950s/early 1960s, and has been a service member of the Hunterville RSA for many years. She has been the RSA president
RSA Queen’s Service Medal recipients in 2013: from left, Jim Newman (Queen’s Birthday Honours), Maureen Fenton (New Year Honours) and Charles Cooke (Queen’s Birthday Honours).
for five years and welfare officer for 10, and is a past secretary and treasurer. She represented the Hunterville ward on the Rangitikei District Council for three terms, has been a member of the Hunterville Community Committee since 1996 and chair for six years, and supervised of community service people for 10 years on behalf of the Hunterville police. She has been treasurer of Hunterville’s beautification committee and Bruce Sreet Promotions, is a life member of the bowling and swimming clubs, past president of the women’s bowling club, and leads singing and is a eucharistic minister at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. For Jim Newman, the hardest part about being awarded a QSM was keeping the news quiet until it was officially announced, says Jim Newman. The Korean veteran, who turns 80 in July, was
notified in late May and had to keep hush until the public release in June. His wife, who became increasingly suspicious when letters from the governor general and the prime minister began arriving at the house. Newman has been president of the New Zealand Korea Veterans’ Association since 2009, and was elected a delegate to the International Federation of Korean War Veterans’ Association. He has been president, treasurer and an executive committee member of the Auckland RSA . His other roles include: Taranaki Search and Rescue member; officer-in-charge of the New Zealand Antarctic Research Programme at Scott Base; Apparel Industry Training Board director; Department of Labour industrial mediator,Employment Tribunal member; Justice of the Peace since 1977.
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RSA SALUTES YOUNG ANZAC HEROES We just did what we had to do, say 12-year-olds
This quintet may have had reserved seats for the Anzac of the Year presentation, but they had no reservations about how much Will White and Sergio Schuler deserved the award. From left: Jo Schuler (cousin), Grace Clare (Will’s older sister) Morgan Schuler (cousin) Estelle Schuler (Sergio’s older sister), Loui Schuler (cousin). Photo: Mike Hill Photography.
Jo Bailey Twelve-year-old cousins Will White and Sergio Schuler say they didn’t think about being frightened during their dramatic rescue of a stricken man on a deserted part of Waihi beach. “We just did what we had to do,” Sergio Schuler says matter-of-factly. Their embodiment of the Anzac spirit of comradeship, compassion, courage and commitment in looking after their mates led to them becoming the youngest recipients of the RNZRSA’s Anzac of the Year award. Sergio says it was “cool” to receive the award from the governor general, Lt Gen Sir Jerry Mateparae: “It was a great honour. I was pretty proud.” Will White, who says he was “surprised and excited” to win the award, has already been invited to local primary schools to talk about his experiences. The boys families - Nicole Clare and Paul Schuler (Will’s parents), from Waihi Beach, and Vivian and Anthony Schuler (Sergio’s parents), from Te Aroha – have somewhat more to say about the recognition of the cousins’ heroics. They say both families are “incredibly proud” of them, and believe the link the award has created between the RSA and youth is “fantastic”. To page 4
Two cousins at the centre of dramatic beach rescue It was a hot December day. Vivian Schuler took her son, three daughters, their cousin, and one of their friends for a swim in the surf near her family’s Bowentown bach, south of Waihi Beach. “Sergio (Schuler) and Will (White) were already in the water when they noticed a man in trouble further out,” she says. “They immediately started swimming towards him. It was a pretty big call to let them go as we were on a remote part of the beach, and there was nobody else around.” She knew she had to stay on the beach with the smaller children and, with adrenaline “racing”, watched as the boys swam out to assist the man. They braved 1.5 metre swells to reach Vincent Shao, a 32-year-old property developer from
Auckland. He was fully clothed, having lost his footing in waist-deep water while setting craypots; he had been dragged 100 metres from the shore by a rip. The tall man was distressed. Sergio, a strong competitive swimmer, returned to raise the alarm, then headed back out to help Will, who had stayed with Shao. Shao’s lungs were filling with water and he was trying to grab the boys to stay afloat. However Will used his lifesaving skills to assist Shao to get out of the rip, and encouraged him to remain calm. The boys tried to keep their distance to ensure they wouldn’t be dragged under by Shao, and encourage him to swim back to the beach
himself. But they had to physically help0 him at times, and eventually dragged him to shore as his condition deteriorated. When they reached the beach he collapsed from exhaustion and started vomiting the water he had swallowed. The boys and Vivian Schuler put him into the recovery position. The first emergency responder was Waihi St John Ambulance officer Pauline Davison. It took them about five minutes to carry Shao over big sand dunes to the ambulance and police. He was taken to Tauranga Hospital in a serious condition; St John staff told Vivian Schuler his life had been saved by mere minutes. He made a full recovery.
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RSA RECOGNISES HEROes From page 3 “We were speechless and in tears when the RSA told us the boys had won,” says Nicole Clare. “These awards are a great reflection on the RSA that really help to keep the Anzac spirit alive,” says Vivian Schuler. “Every time the boys look at their medals, they will remember their own achievements, but also the courage and sacrifice made by the veterans. They’ll never be forgotten. “It is such an honour. We are humbled by this recognition from the RSA, which has been really quite overwhelming. We are extremely proud of them.” Governor general Lt Gen Sir Jerry Mateparae, in
presenting the award, said the boys demonstrated that the Anzac spirit, showcased at Gallipoli almost a century ago, is alive and strong in even our youngest New Zealanders. The parents were told of the boys’ success a week before the presentation, but had to keep it under wraps from them for a week. They didn’t find out until the day before the presentation. Will and Sergio were told that Waihi Beach RSA president Maurice Rimmer was visiting homes to speak to young people about the meaning of Anzac Day and that he would be coming to see them. “Maurice arrived at our house with a Seven Sharp cameraman and reporter, and sat down to chat with the boys, who still had no idea what
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PHOTOS: Left: Will White and Sergio Schuler celebrate their Anzac of the Year award with their wider family, and representatives from the Waihi & Beach Police and the Waihi Beach Surf Club, and the Manawaru School and Waihi College principals. Paul Schuler and Nicole Clare are immediately to Will’s left; Vivian and Anthony Schuler are the back immediately to Sergio’s right. Above: Governor general Lt Gen Sir Jerry Mateparae presents the certificates and statuette to Will White (left) and Sergio Schuler. Below: Senior students from Waihi College pay tribute with a haka. Bottom: Will White gets alongside members of the Waihi Beach Memorial RSA women’s section. Photos: Mike Hill Photography.
was coming,” says Nicole. “Then he started to talk about the Anzac of the Year award, and told the boys they had won it. They were lost for words and over the next few days came to realise what a huge honour it was.” The presentation was made at the Waihi Beach RSA the following day in front of family, friends, school representatives, members of the Waihi Surf Lifesaving Club (where Will has been training for three years), police and the Waihi Beach RSA. For the next year the boys will share the stunning bronze statuette based on the famous Gallipoli image ‘Man with the donkey’. For the previous 12 months, it had been held by the Student Volunteer Army in Christchurch. They were also presented with bronze medallions and a junior membership to the Waihi Beach RSA. Despite the happy outcome, Vivian Schuler – who taken her family, Will and a friend to the beach for a swim – remembers the situation as “every mum’s worst nightmare”, “At the time we were all in rescue mode and focused on saving Vincent (Shao). To know the boys had brought him in and that he was going to survive was fantastic. “But later on it hit home that the situation could have gone the other way. The boys had to go way out past the back breakers, putting
their own lives at risk to save him.” She says it was lucky both Sergio and Will were strong swimmers who have been brought up to handle the surf. Will also has three years of surf lifesaving experience. “My husband, Anthony, has always taken the children out deep, as we believe they should be confident in the water and not get scared or panic out there. But for the boys to prove it in that form is pretty special.” When they got home, she immediately called Nicole and Paul to tell them about the rescue. “My immediate reaction was ‘Are the boys all right?’,” says Nicole. “I felt quite emotional for a few days afterwards, and extremely grateful there weren’t three fatalities. But at the same time I was so proud of what they achieved. I don’t think it’s something every 12-year-old boy could do.” The rescue gained the attention of both national and international media, with the boys’ effort judged the New Zealand surf lifesaving rescue of the month and, later, rescue of the year. “The attention has been remarkable and pretty much ongoing since December,” says Nicole. “The boys have been on TV1, TV3, done radio interviews, received letters from MPs, congratulation cards, emails, and comments on Facebook. Someone even sent $5 to each for them to buy an ice cream.”
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‘highly effective modern gunboat diplomacy’ Chris Turver Forty years ago the crews of two New Zealand frigates showed the world that France could not go on testing nuclear weapons in the atmosphere above remote Mururoa atoll in the Pacific. In July survivors of the separate HMNZS Otago and HMNZS Canterbury voyage to Mururoa will meet in Tauranga for a 40th reunion to celebrate how a tiny country changed world opinion. Less well known was that the ships were supported on their 8400-kilometre return voyages
Prime minsiter Norman Kirk (right) described the frigates sent to Mururoa as ‘silent witnesses with the power to bring alive the conscience of the world’. New Zealand’s immigration and mines minister, Fraser Colman (left) was the minister chosen to travel on board
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by Australia through reprovisioning and fuel-oil transfers from the 25,000-tonne HMAS Supply. The New Zealand government decided in 1973 that France’s refusal to accept an International Court of Justice ruling to stop atmospheric nuclear testing could not go unchallenged. Prime minister Norman Kirk said the two frigates would be “silent witnesses with the power to bring alive the conscience of the world”; to reinforce that view he sent his mines and immigration minister Fraser Colman as well. Both warships observed atmospheric nuclear tests at the 13-mile mark to be outside the territorial limit at Mururoa, with journalists on board reporting to the world on both the month-long voyages and France’s 30th and 31st blasts. Two “light dustings”of radiation were picked up on Canterbury by National Radiation Laboratory scientist Jim McCahon following what was believed to be a miscalculation on lower-level wind direction by the French. He reported the total dosage fallout over 21 hours as 0.10 of a milliard. Between 1962 and 1990 France tested 167 nuclear devices at Mururoa, 44 of them in the atmosphere with an overall yield equivalent to 12,000 kilotons of TNT, before world opinion led France to shift underground in 1974 and end all testing in 1996. The peaceful-protest voyages were later described as highly-effective, modern-day
HMAS Supply refuels HMNZS Canterbury en route to Mururoa.
gunboat diplomacy. They marked the start of New Zealand’s anti-nuclear stance and opened the door for the eventual declaration of a nuclearfree South Pacific. Mururoa Veterans’ Society president Peter Mitchell, of Tauranga, who is organising the July 20 reunion, says it will be a chance for the New Zealand government, the Royal New Zealand Navy, and surviving crew members to recognise an outstanding achievement. “Those protest voyages eventually led to a complete stop to all nuclear testing in the Pacific, and that’s a legacy that our sailors and all New Zealanders can be proud of,” he says. The reunion will also recognise Australia’s contribution to the Mururoa mission because without HMAS Supply, the month-long protest voyages would not have been possible. Supply
spent two and a half months deep in the South Pacific “steaming around in circles keeping the Kiwis going”, according to the Naval Tankermen Association. Recognition for the 235 crew of the Otago and 245 crew of the Canterbury came with the a government award of the New Zealand Special Services Medal (Mururoa). As for the history-making ships, the Otago was cut up for scrap in Auckland in 1987 and the Canterbury was sunk off the Bay of Islands in 2007 to create a fish and diving reef. Reunion information: Peter Mitchell – 07 5776704; 021 1792136; get_over_it@xtra.co.nz. Note: ChrisTurver was the New Zealand Press Association reporter on board HMNZS Canterbury for the voyage to Mururoa. He is now a member of the Otaki RSA.
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RSA National
Much to do – and OUR future DEPENDS ON DOING IT WELL Don McIver, RNZRSA president
The last three months have been busy for us all. Following the restructure of National Office, we now have a team designed to manage our move forward. They are highly motivated towards providing you with the helpful, comprehensive and timely service that is your right. I have already received comment from RSAs and members who have found the experience of working with the restructured office staff positive. But there is much more to be done. We need to focus on the future of the RSA and how we will manage it. The chief executive and his staff are now committed to developing the planning basis that will be presented for approval to the National Executive Committee and eventually the National Council in October. There are some tough decisions in front of us. We will need to face squarely the challenge of our present financial model and the limitations it imposes. Membership fees and capitation are
not the only answer. We must also foresee the pathway towards the replacement of our present outdated infrastructure with modern business services and technology And, behind all of that, we must modernise our governance model so that it is effective in the modern volunteer world in which we operate. We must ensure a consistency of commitment to remembrance, hospitality and support services, on which the RSA has built its reputation. We must live the Anzac Spirit, a core philosophy of our brand. We also stand ready to respond with a veteran’s perspective on the Government’s redraft of the War Pension Act. We are committed to ensuring that the Government lives up to its promises to ensure no one is disadvantaged by its provisions, and that the law is delivered in a timely way. The second and key module of the support services training package has been delivered,
and we are working on the follow-up packages. I hope these will be a valuable resource for our support advisers, especially those working in the field, to ensure the delivery of a comprehensive, consistent and sensitive service to those who need it. We are committed to developing our membership, especially of serving personal and younger ex-service personal. They are a key resource in the RSA’s future. We have to make an offering to them which is attractive and relevant, or they will not join us. Some of that work falls on the National Office to implement, but the rest is up to you. These people will not enter your RSA if the atmosphere and the membership are not welcoming. As I noted in the last Review, this will all be set against the forthcoming World War 1 centenary and our own RSA centenary in 2016. It is clear that the country expects the RSA to
play an important role in these commemorations. A great deal of work has been done by the staff, and the development of the RSA centenary programme is progressing well. Five components are being developed for national delivery over four years. Application has been made to Lotteries for the first three, and application will be made this year for the remaining two. Additional funding through sponsorship and a contribution from the RSA will also be required to fund the programme. Details of the programme will be notified to RSAs soon. “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so, on the seventh day, he rested from all his work.” It would be nice to say we could sit back and rest too, but there is no time for that. There is much to do – and the future of the RSA depends on us doing it well.
• national technology requirements; • national marketing support requirements Like many RSAs, setting a national budget for next year will be challenging - there’s a huge need to implement new technologies and to market ourselves, but very little budget available. Until our financial model itself is transformed – and we’re working on that as a high priority – we face heavy restrictions on what’s achievable. It’s as frustrating for us as for you. Please bear with us. You, too, have a role to play. Please support this work with considered and constructive responses. If your RSA asks you to feed back on ideas, get committed, get involved. This is your opportunity to shape and support the future of your RSA – both local and national.
funding of our all-embracing RSA centenary programme. This isn’t business as usual, this is once-in-a-century work, and it’ll have an impact on both national and local RSAs. The centenary programme will be funded from a separate stream and will require additional support staff to manage and run it. Essential to its success, and part of the requirements for Lotteries funding, is the need to ensure activities are properly resourced. Arranging the funding for a national programme over four years is a big task. We are working on securing sponsorships and it’s encouraging to know that there is considerable interest from major corporates, national institutions and some of our largest community organisations to work with us during this significant period for our nation. It will be no different in your communities. Consider how you can help your RSA with its local programme.
GETTING DOWN TO WORK Stephen Clarke, RNZRSA chief executive
This year’s Anzac Season was a ‘baptism of fire’ for your new National Office team, but also one that brought them great satisfaction. Rachel Boyd, from Whangarei Girls’ College, attendes Gallipoli as our ANZ RSA speech winner, and 12-year-old cousins Will White and Sergio Schular were awarded Anzac of the Year – revealing that the spirit of Anzac truly lives in Kiwis of all ages. As I write this, it is National Volunteer Week, and many thanks to all our volunteers who supported this year’s poppy appeal, and to those who support our veterans through the year. Again, you exemplify the commitment and compassion that is at the heart of the RSA. Transformation under way It is planning/budget time – and a significant task as we begin to identify what transformation will mean for the RSA organisation, and how we will get there. The goals are to maximise the
benefit of being a national organisation, and to deliver services relevant for RSAs, members and supporters. It’ll involve surveys, evaluations and consultations, and will take time to determine what’s right for everyone. We’re looking for answers that work for RSAs of all sizes and types. It’s not just about those with the biggest clubs, the loudest voice, or the most money. The real leveraging power of the organisation occurs when we act as one – one network, one brand. As our Anzac founders were fond of saying: “Each for All and All for Each”. It’s about unity. Over the next six months we will be talking to RSAs about: • the overall transformation of the organisations and how they will be involved; • minimum standards for governance, management and operations; • leveraging our national purchasing power;
World War 1 centenary programme At the end of May, National Office submitted an application to Lotteries to assist with the
RSA With a View: Alistair Kerr
Books balance the heroism and horrors of war for young readers Quite unjustly, the RSA has from time to time been accused of “glorifying warfare”. This myth often surfaces around Anzac Day, and I suppose there’s little we can do about it, except continue to make it very clear that this is not one of our core values. Many books on the theme of war and New Zealand’s part in it, often appear around Anzac Day; it is good to see that, more and more, these books present realistic accounts of warfare’s horrors as well as the heroism and glory. I have found two such books lately, which not only do this, but are aimed directly at younger readers. I was so impressed with them that I have managed to arrange for copies of both to
be presented to each of our local schools. Anzac Day – The New Zealand Story: What it is and Why it matters and Nice Day For a War – Adventures of a Kiwi Soldier in World War 1 are quite different from one another in format, but share a determination to show the horrible side of warfare to young readers. Both present information in a format that would attract and hold the attention of readers from around the year 7/year 8 age group. Anzac Day... covers a wide range of related topics – details of the original Gallipoli campaign, the war in France, Anzac Day services, war memorials, the role of the RSA in remembering Anzac down the years. It packs a huge amount
of very well illustrated information into a readable book . Nice Day... is based on the story of a New Zealand soldier who served in the trenches in France. It neatly combines the “graphic novel” idea (a story told through pictures) with conventional print content and illustrations. Most of the latter are photographs of memorabilia once owned by the soldier. The book does not flinch from depicting the misery and terror, but balances that with the values of mateship and humour. I’m sure any 12-year-old who reads either or both would come away with an appreciation of both the horror and the heroism warfare involves.
This impression encouraged our club’s executive committee to use money from a fund tagged for such a purpose, to put a copy of each book into the library of each of our full primary schools and our intermediate school. May I suggest your club considers doing the same thing? It would be a small contribution towards denying the fabrication that the RSA “glorifies” war. Anzac Day – The New Zealand Story, by Philippa Werrym, is published by New Holland Publishers (NZ Ltd). RRP $24.99. Nice Day For a War – Adventures of a Kiwi Soldier in World War 1, by Chris Slane and Matt Elliott, published by Harper Collins. RRP $29.99.
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Your letters PRAISE and thanks FOR Pacific commemoration I would like to thank the Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs, the New Zealand Army, the New Zealand Navy and and Royal New Zealand Air Force, doctors, nurses, caregivers and all concerned in organising the Pacific Campaign 70th commemorations in New Caledonia. This was the biggest (84) contingent of veterans to leave New Zealand, and our ages ranged from 85 to 95. The welfare and care shown to us was amazing, and the accommodation in Auckland and New Caledonia was first-class. It was amazing. We were treated like royalty wherever we went...banquets put on by the mayor, lunch by the French Army, the food was wonderful. It was a great experience, particularly Anzac Day. The service was great and well organised. It was good having a front seat under the marquee as, after the service, all the officials walked along, shook our hands and had a chat. Friday at the cemetery was a sad day and I am not afraid to say many a tear was shed. Officials and veterans were led by the New Zealand Defence Force Maori Culture Group with a chant
Bob Buckland at the Pacific Campaign 70th anniversary commemorations in New Caledonia.
of remembrance down between the graves to the memorial. This was a special day. One that I will never forget. To read all the names on the wall of those who were never found, and to think that they could not lie beside their comrades, was very sad. It was a great adventure, and hospitality was 100%. It was an honour and a privilege to pay our
respects to those who paid the supreme sacrifice. Robert (Bob) Buckland (Tauranga) P.S. Bob’s grand-daughter, Lisa Buckland, adds: “I have never felt so proud of my grandfather, 94 years old, never travelled or been out of the county since the war. For him to have been given this experience was very overwhelming for me. I also give many thanks to all involved.”
Greek remembers the sacrifice of Anzac soldiers I am a 35-year-old Hellene (Greek) citizen who loves the history of my country and the sacrifices for freedom that have been made by Greeks, but especially the sacrifices of men and women who loved and respected the Hellenic spirit and culture. I feel the need to express my great respect to those people from Australia and New Zealand who fought, who were injured, and who gave their lives for the freedom of Hellas during World War 2. What gave me this fine opportunity was an article (http://istoria.forumotion.com/t1008-topic) dedicated to a brave man, Maj William Sydney Jordan 2627, who fought with great valour and ethos in my country against the Nazi invaders. His military worth is measurable by the three Hellenic military honours and awards he was awarded, along with the Military Cross and
Maj William Sydney Jordan (right) and his medals (left) – the last three on the right of the photos are Hellenic honours.
recommendations from Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. I congratulate New Zealanders for the support and the tribute they continue to pay to
Tunnel graffiti story brings back memories I have lived in New Zealand for 64 years, but was born in France, in Auchy-les-mines, near La Bassee and the city of Lille. When I read the article (‘Pictures throw light on tunnel graffiti’, RSA Review, autumn 2013) I recalled going to Arras with my father to the market to buy calves for the farm. My grandmother used to tell me some of the story of the tunnel from the 1914-18 war. Her village, Auchy-les-mines, was occupied by the German army, so the family was evacuated before the tunnel was used to blow the Germans out of the village. There still at least 10 big holes – so big you could put three-storey houses in them. A long time after
Taranaki Rhododendron Festival Coach tour to the Taranaki Rhododendron & Garden Festival. A variety of gardens are visited from small cottage gardens to large country estates. 5 day itinerary include the Forgotten World Highway. 6 day itinerary includes Pukeiti & Crosshills Garden. Both tours have a night at the Grand Chateau Departs Auckland 2 November 2013 Options from Wellington and other centres are available.
I was one of the 84 privileged World War 2 veterans who travelled to New Caledonia in an RNZAF 757 to attend the 70th Anzac anniversary celebrations. It was a tremendous experience...a well organised undertaking carried out by various government organisations – the Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs, the Royal New Zealand Air Force, the New Zealand Army, nurses, Maori concert party, photographers, civilians and Padre Wayne. I know very well that this trip will be remembered and discussed in its various forms, and will be the highlight of the memoirs of many vets who served in this area and the Pacific. As one of the “cancer club”, along with four other known vets, all I can recommend, men, is “Accentuate the positive, Father Time waits for no one”. Congratulations must also to go to Aaron Hackney back in Wellington, and his support staff. To RAdm Jack Steer, Col Angie Fitzsimons, Lt Burtenshaw, Brandon and all aboard the 757 - “Arohanui, Thank you all, I had a ball. Pipi Boyd NZ7544 (Blenheim)
the war, my father had a field where the supporting wood from the tunnel used to rot and leave big holes. The Auchy-les-mines village was German, Vermelles was French, Cuinchy was English. Later the Canadians were in Vimy and in 1917 the Americans came. Even when the war was finished. My father was looking after German prisoners at an exit in Bully-les-mines and he would take the tunnel to come to see my mother, his girlfriend. It is always with pleasure and enjoyment that I read the RSA Review. My best regards to you all from an old lady of 92 years. Emilie Cox (Taupo)
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the memory of these great men and women on their war memorials and in their Anzac Day commemorations.. I would like to inform Maj Jordan’s relatives and/or comrades that we have not forgotten the sacrifices of these warriors. Our deepest respect goes with them and we hope humanity will not end up living such facts again. Stephanos Peppas, Hellas (Greece)
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RSA REVIEW • WINTER 2013
father’s top-Secret steps retraced When Judi Wigzell decided to visit Borneo to see where her father had lived with headhunters while fighting the Japanese during World War 2, little did she know it would escalate into a full-scale celebration. Her father, the late Sgt Frank Wigzell NZ422668, was one of 23 New Zealand soldiers seconded to the Australian Army for deployment with the top-secret Z-Special Unit, which carried out reconnaissance and espionage activities behind enemy lines before the surrender of the Japanese forces in Borneo in October 1945. She discovered that the Sarawak Tourism Federation was planning to erect a memorial plaque in the remote highlands community of Bario, 1090 metres above sea level, where the first Z-Special operatives parachuted into on March 25, 1945. She contacted the families of other Z-Special veterans in Australia, and four of them came to the 68th-anniversary event. Leading the group was 93-year-old Jack Tredrea, from Victoria, one of the few surviving Z-Special operatives. He had made two previous visits to Borneo (the second, in 2010, documented on Australian television) and he was invited to unveil the new monument. With him were: Lynne and Colin Behn (his daughter and sonin-law); Bob Pinkerton, from Perth (son of Lt Robert Pinkerton NX43707), and Linda Burr, from Adelaide (daughter of Sgt Fred Sanderson QX11361). Before going to Bario the visitors were guests at a Sarawak Tourism Federation luncheon. A welcome letter described their “pilgrimage visit” as “a significant inspiration to us in promoting a greater awareness of the selfless sacrifices of your comrades and the supporting local tribal warriors in the cause of peace, unity and freedom from the Japanese occupying forces during World War 2.” The letter said the establishment of a minimuseum in Bario, with exhibits from Sarawak Museum, was an initiative towards the preservation and promotion of this priceless heritage. Visitors can walk through a historical journey on Z-Special Unit’s Operation Semut. Flying over the rugged ridges of the Borneo jungle in the small Twin Otter aircraft (still the only means of access into the interior), Judi could only imagine the apprehension her father would have felt before he jumped from the RAAF B-24 Liberator in the second Z-Special group insertion. He had splash-landed in a paddy field at the edge of a hastily-constructed bamboo airstrip
Plans in train for 70th anniversary of Bario landings
They had time to reflect on the hardships experience by Z-Special Unit. at Belawit where Maj Tom Harrisson had set up the Semut 1 operational base. His first meeting with the local Kelabit headhunters was when they laughingly dragged him to dry land. Judi’s first encounter with the locals was equally memorable – an official reception at Bario airport, then whisked away in a convoy of four-wheel-drives for the unveiling ceremony, and a luncheon at the Bario Asal longhouse, with welcome speeches by dignatories and traditional musical items by the women. A special banquet in the evening, organised by the Rurum Kelabit Association, was attended by more than 200 people The guests were greeted individually by the tribespeople, many of whom wore their husbands’ and fathers’ wartime medals. More speeches were given and responded to by the visiting relatives of the Z-Special operatives. Judi was able to retrace her father’s footsteps along one of the jungle tracks he traversed with his band of local guerrillas searching for the Japanese and reporting their movements by WT
wireless back to base. With a local guide, she and three other visitors had climbed 600 metres when the heavens opened. Within minutes, they were drenched, and forced to retreat, slithering and stumbling across bamboo-pole bridges accompanied by thunder and lightning in a replay of conditions their fathers endured 68 years ago. Sheltering under one of the huts of the native Punan people, who still live in the jungle without any modern facilities, they had time to reflect on the hardships experienced by Z-Special Unit members trying to survive against an enemy and a hostile environment. Judi presented a framed memorial to the mini-museum listing the names of the 22 New Zealanders who served with Z-Special Unit, along with a photograph of her father as a 20-year-old in his army uniform. Jack Tredrea also contributed a plaque with the names of the first eight Australian operatives who parachuted into Bario. She hopes visitors may appreciate that the Anzac spirit of Z-Special Unit is also part of their heritage. She also donated a New Zealand flag to the Sarawak Tourism Federation for use on Anzac Day and other occasions at the Heroes Memorial in Kuching to recognise the involvement of Kiwi soldiers in the liberation of Borneo.
PHOTOS: Jack Tredrea and Judi Wigzell (centre) in the official party at the unveiling of the new monument in Bario (top) and presenting plaques to the Bario Mini-Museum curator (lower, far left). Below, left: Z-Special Unit operatives parachute into Borneo on March 25, 1945. Below, right: A Kelebit family waits to greet the visitors at the special banquet organised in their honour by the Rurum Kelabit Association.
Judi Wigzell and the Australian family members who travelled to Borneo this year plan to return for the 70th anniversary of the Bario landings in March 2015. She hopes some relatives of other New Zealanders involved in Z-Special Unit will join her. She says they will be welcomed as family by the local Kelabit community and come away enriched by the experience. Information: millarju@xtra.co.nz. Z-Special Unit’s existence was not revealed until 40 years after World War 2 when the provisions of the Official Secrets Act were lifted in 1986. Many operatives published books about their personal exploits, but Sgt Frank Wigzell was the first to research and document the entire history of the unit to dispel any doubts about its existence and the role it played in the SouthWest Pacific. New Zealand Army Involvement, Special Operations Australia was published in the United Kingdom in 2001. This edition is now out of print, but a new e-book, Blood Brotherz, reprints his personal account of his involvement with Z-Special Unit and his top-secret mission with Operation Semut I, which resulted in the deaths of around 1200 Japanese and the capture of 400 prisoners in Borneo. Judi Wigzell has contributed the foreword and an epilogue, which records her father’s efforts to obtain official recognition of Z-Special Unit for its New Zealand members. Another 14 Kiwi ‘Z’ servicemen were in Borneo: Maj Don Stott (Auckland), Lt F.J. Leckie (Christchurch), S/man Ernie Myers (Invercargill), Capt L.T. McMillan (Auckland), WO R.G.Houghton (Wellington), Lt R.M. Morton (Dargaville), Sgt W. Horrocks (Auckland), S/Sgt G.R. Greenwood (Christchurch), Signalman N.G. Flemming (Auckland), Sgt V.F. Sharpe (Christchurch), Lt R. Tapper (Pukekohe), Cpl G.R. Edlin (Invercargill), Sgt R.R. Butt (Auckland), Sgt R.B.Shakes (Auckland). Maj Stott and Capt McMillan were lost, presumed drowned, after being off-loaded into folboats from a submarine off the Borneo coast, and S/ man Myers was beheaded after being captured and tortured by the Japanese when he landed.
Inventory first step towards refurbishment of Southland war memorials Peter Owens Venture Southland has secured an $85,000 Lottery Grants Board grant to help restore at least 10 war memorials. Growing awareness of Anzac Day and, increasingly, Armistice Day, and the 100-year anniversary of World War 1 in 2014 are motivating many communities and organisations to refurbish monuments. The Government has allocated more than $17 million to help communities commemorate the centenary. This Lottery Grants Board has $7.291 million for community events and smaller capital
works, and $10m for larger-scale projects of national significance. Venture Southland will contract a heritage consultant to assess the memorials that will be identified when the Southland War Memorial Inventory is developed in consultation with the war memorial steering group. Historians and community groups have also identified several memorials in need of restoration. Local communities are being supported to look after individual monuments and develop a Southland-wide inventory of memorials. The project has arisen amidst concerns that some
memorials are being lost as older people with relevant knowledge die and community venues change or disappear. Venture Southland community development team leader Bobbi Brown says about 160 memorials have been identified. However, it is widely thought there could be as many as 600 ‘memorials’ to wars in the Southland region. This As well as statues, obelisks and column s, these include cairns, plinths, plaques and rolls of honour, memorial plantings, clocks, bird baths, gates/arches/entranceways and bridges. The inventory will eventually lead to an
electronic record available to the public on line. A steering group has been established, and Venture Southland is facilitating the project. RSA branches are being contacted. Memorials to World War 1 were largely funded by local communities without government assistance. Following World War 2, most communities accepted the then-government policy that subsidies would be available only for “living memorials”, hence the proliferation of amenitybased memorials – including parks, libraries, swimming baths, indoor sport complexes, halls/ community centres.
10
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Brave New World of Technology
‘stuff’ is smaller, snazzier, swifter – but smarter? Sue Russell offers a personal and, she admits, possible slanted, perspective on the world of modern technology. If I live to be as old as my Dad, 91 and counting, I will draw my last breath sometime in the year 2050. My life will have straddled, in approximately equal measure, the 20th and 21st centuries – years filled to the brim with the most amazing discoveries, inventions and technologies. Some might liken this passage of time to a massive lurch forward in the ascendency of mankind along the evolutionary trail. Others may carry a more cynical feeling about what we have gained or lost along the way. There's no more visible illustration of this giddying journey than the boundless proliferation of gadgets labelled under the term ICT – information and communication technology. Accessing the internet gives a glimpse of some of the most significant inventions that have come about during my Dad’s life, which began in 1922. His time has produced change more profound than simply the gadgetry. Yes, things are smarter, smaller, more accessible and faster, but the latter-day frontiers of technology have, by their nature, turned inward into space and time. They have disappeared from us. Dad could see the moving parts of new inventions and touch, even smell, them as he grew up and got older; we’re denied this experience by the digital, virtual, micro-chipped stream from which today’s technologies flow. Gadgets galore find their way almost daily to the market and within our reach, promising smart this and that, faster this and that. At the tap of a key or the swipe of a finger across a screen, we can hold the world. When we think about just how much smart stuff there is – heralded in as the late Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple Inc, perfected with a
We laughed and scoffed at Maxwell Smart’s ‘shoe phone’ from the ‘Get Smart’ television series of the late 1960s television series. Now we live with – and in some cases, for – them every day.
This thing called ‘social media’ seems anything but; rather a dumbingdown of the human in us. fervour and anticipation tantamount to the second coming of Christ – it is little wonder the young (and some not so young) seem hell-bent on trying to keep pace. It’s an unmistakable truth, sadly, that last year’s Christmas present phone isn’t going to cut the mustard for long. I am not enamoured by how smart, accessible and quick things are. As I get older, I find myself valuing quiet, space and time, and especially the quality of conversation. The writer in me depends on information and communication technologies to do my work, but they are tools and engaged with in that way. I have little interest in going any further into the world that lurks under my keyboard or on some virtual cloud. Not so long ago when the mobile phone I owned became instantly obsolete (for reasons I cannot fathom), I chose to end the relationship with that technology. It was timely. I was uneasy with the world’s accessibility to me and me to it. Though a microscopic gesture in the greater scheme of things, it was nonetheless freeing in nature and, if I’m honest, there’s an aspect of feeling a tad smug
about this – a novel point of distinction separating me from most of my friends. My 29-year-old daughter, currently travelling the globe, says her smart-phone has replaced her laptop and practically every other gadget she owns, barring the e-book. I can understand this, given the array of sophisticated ‘apps’ her phone holds. I'm grateful for the GPS app, which saved me from the near-death experience of being lost in Auckland when I fetched her from the airport not long ago; but while it’s comforting to know I can contact her within moments no matter where she is roaming, I hold our best conversations until we are face to face. Real conversation, with all its mumblings and stumblings, carries with it the most human of capacities, listening. Texts, tweets (or are they twitters?), unfathomable and often plain silly Facebook comments and email do not. The ability to discern that which is worthy to talk about is a sensibility we don’t seem to put much store on any more. We can ‘talk’ all the time these days because our voice, contained somewhere inside a sleek hand-held device, is never far away, and just as the laws of supply and demand affect price,
The next ‘smart’ thing in personal accessories?
A wise friend described the world wide web as a million miles wide and a millimetre deep.
Which decade do these inventions/technologies belong to? You have a choice of nine decades – 1920, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990, 2000s. There are seven decades with six items each, and two decades with seven items each. Artificial heart Aqualung 'Black box' flight recorder Cabbage Patch kids Contraception pill Drive-in movies Hand-held calculator Iron lung Kidney dialysis machine Microwave Prozac Silicone breast implants Tekno illuminating bubbles Virtual reality (the term)
Artificial liver Birth control patch Braille glove Canned beer Cordless phone Electron microscope Hydrogen bomb IBM personal computer Liposuction Penicillin Quartz crystal watch Soft contact lenses Viagra Word processor
Aerosol spray can Ball-point pen Car radio Cell phone Credit card Food processor HIV inhibitor IPod Monopoly Photocopier Roller blades Superglue Video cassette World Wide Web
Adhesive plaster (eg, Elastoplast, Band-aids) Bar-code scanner Cloning Colour TV Disposable camera Frisbee Insulin Java Computer Language McDonalds Post-It notes Self-cleaning windows Synthetic skin HOW DID YOU DO? Video disk ANSWERS: PAGE 12 YouTube
words in their abundance have become cheap. I see around me in the little town I live in, a darker side to social-media technology. I see children walking to school with their heads down, shoulders hunched over their phone or IPod/MP3 (music players for the unversed). Some are very young, and I wonder in what shape they get to school each day, and how well they receive the experiences of learning their teachers have to offer. The simple pursuit of my morning walk with a friend is interrupted by the beeping, singing or ringing of her smart-phone. It is the latest Iphone she says, but honestly it looks the same as her last. When it wakes up, she responds; classic tail wagging the dog. I hide my annoyance at this, but annoyed I am! While the earth spins on its axis, revolving on its planetary course at the same speed I imagine it has always done so, everything down below, here on terra firma, has exponentially sped up. We grow impatient when the computer system driving email or accessing the internet is running slower than we’ve become used to, even though that difference, felt as a real exasperation, may be a matter of only a second or two, if that. Such is our connection to and expectation of speed. And if we’re honest, how many of us have at least once regretted pushing the send button when emailing? No ‘lol’ moment when that happens, I know. This thing called ‘social media’ seems anything but; rather a dumbing-down of the human in us – that which strives to connect meaningfully with others. The word ‘web’, as in ‘world wide’, has sinister overtones, suggesting entrapment and inescapability. At its extreme, social media can turn downright nasty when used as a tool to bully, evidenced in the tragedy of teenage suicides attributed to this phenomenon. A wise friend once described the world wide web as a million miles wide and a millimetre deep. On-line news of the world is constantly updated in real time, causing consumers to flick in and out of it, getting another news fix. Clipped single-sentence paragraphs have become the order of the on-line news day – get the info out, and get it out fast is the mantra of the journo’s grind. To page 11
Brave New World of Technology 11
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Phones, Internet and the Social Disconnect Sue Russell We’re a small country in so many ways compared to the greater goings-on around the world. While our relatively tiny population spread over the islands we inhabit means we can find ways to be isolated relatively easily if we choose, as a people we have nonetheless zealously embraced modern communication technology. It's the new super-glue that binds us together. In 2011, according to the CIA World Factbook, New Zealand ranked 107th of 251 nations for number of cellular phones; a staggering 4.82 million phones for a population at that time, according to Statistics New Zealand, of 4,405,080 souls. Even allowing for a decent percentage of these no longer being in use, reconciled to the glove-box or the kitchen drawer, this ranks us up there with the techno-savvy heavyweights of the world, the United States, India and China. Impressive? If that isn’t distinction enough, when you look at the 2012 figures for internet hosts – in other words, a computer connected to the internet directly or remotely – we rank 34th. Measuring the number of internet hosts
is one indicator of the extent of our internet connectivity, and it also says a lot about how we’re spending our time. Fiddling with sophisticated gadgets is no longer the preserve of the wealthy adult cohort. In fact, if we’re honest, most children can run rings around us when it comes to navigating a way around communication hardware and software. It’s as though evolutionary genetic engineering has prepared them from birth for the on-line world. While the internet has created a connected world, with the answer to just about any question available at the tap of a key or swipe of a finger, there is concern amongst many about its equal and opposite capacity to isolate and make alone. Consultant psychiatrist Andrew Darby, clinical director of adult mental health services for the Waikato District Health Board, has a few things to say about the connection between mental health and social media. “Evidence suggests that people, especially young people, are spending more and more time on social-media streams and are more prone to develop mental illnesses, including depression.”
How’s this for an enterprising and innovative effort to make ride-on technology freely available to and affordable for the masses?
Super-highway smarts in the slow lane? From page 3 Child's play, the stuff of a growing brain and body, has become the victim of the new-age toy, designed to amuse and entertain. Kids have slowed down, in some cases stopped, as evidenced by the burgeoning numbers of overweight and obese children. Look into some of their eyes and you’ll see a jittering, a nervousness, going on, and a decided lack of being present in the moment. I suggest that boredom, rather than something to be avoided at all costs, is better seen as a good thing – the precursor to creativity. My children grew up a generation ago when a lot of the smart stuff wasn’t around. I’m thankful for that. They’re surrounded by it now, but in their formative years, it was a little distanced from their grasp. I am not judging the choices of today's parents and I take my hat off to those, and there are many, who do
their best to guide their children in their first taste of these technologies. The sanctity of childhood has become an incredibly precious thing to preserve, and it is a battle worth waging. My dear old Dad, still living in the home he and Mum built nearly 60 years ago in Hamilton, has settled into his own relationship with gadgets. I’m happy he has those remote controls handy to guide him to the enjoyment of his favourite TV programmes. I’m glad he’s able to watch those programmes on a smart TV. That’s about as much techno as he wants, and to whoever invented his recliner rocker, you get the big tick. Maybe the best way each of us might go in establishing a meaningful relationship to technology is to see it as some vast super-highway with no speed limit and on and off ramps where each of us can choose to enter and exit at our will. I’m comfortable in the slow lane.
Talking face to face, he says, involves much more than, well – talking. It is a holistic experience, involving sight and smell, and full of all the subtle human nuances that form the human condition. “We have found that excessive use of social media does dispose people to becoming isolated and consequently more disengaged. Communication via technology is confined to a narrower band of the sensory perceptions.” Social media gives instant gratification – there’s little, if any, waiting involved; but the space created by waiting is something of great value, if for no other reason that it gives opportunity to reflect, consider and refine thinking. These capacities are threatened when the communication stream races along at an everincreasing pace. Speed has become the great prize and expectation of today’s techno-consumer. Darby is particularly concerned about the adolescent “trying to find his or her way in life while still in the trajectory of maturing”. But he acknowledges positives for the elderly, who often find themselves alone. “It’s fair to say that for many elderly people,
there is a tendency toward a degree of social isolation and the opening-up on social media gives some valuable connectedness. Some studies suggest a link between reducing depression in the elderly and their access to social media. Using these technologies also brings some efficiency in our lives, there’s no doubt about that, but it can also be a real millstone.” Each one of us will find our own connection and relationship to the modern-day tools of communication. For those who maintain a balanced perspective on the place these tools have in their lives, there is a world out there far more accessible to the masses than it has ever been. It may be a shallower world, but it is extremely vast and connected. As we grapple with a future driven relentlessly by change, we can perhaps just glimpse at the further reaches of our imaginations amd just how we will communicate with each other in future. A 22nd-century smart-phone imbedded in our bodies and answered with the flick of an eyelid might seem the stuff of nonsense, but then again, perhaps not – it might be here sooner than we think.
A new written language has become commonplace for those who text. Here's a quick guide to help you reduce your keystrokes. 2moro
Tomorrow
LOL
Laughing out loud/Lots of love
BRB
Be right back
NIMBY
Not in my back yard
BTW
By the way
OIC
Oh, I see
B4N
Bye for now
RBTL
Read between the lines
BCNU
Be seeing you
THKS
Thanks
BFF
Best friends forever
SH
Sh** happens
DILLIC
Do I look like I care
SITD
Still in the dark
GR8
Great
TLC
Tender loving care
J/K
Just kidding
TMI
Too much information
L8R
Later
TYVM
Thank you very much
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12 Brave New World of Technology
climb in for the ‘SMARTCAR’ trip The car is the next great proving ground for communications technology, according to General Motors' chief executive, Dan Akerson. The automobile will become a major platform for tech "and one with far better battery life than an iPhone," Reuters reports him telling the Chief Executives' Club of Boston. He says that in mid-2014, GM will team up with AT&T to start selling vehicles embedded with 4G LTE mobile broadband, a wireless connection that allows for faster flow of data that allows passengers in the back-seat to watch streaming video. Developing better in-car technology is critical for vehicle manufacturers if they want to attract younger, tech-savvy buyers, according to Akerson. If they can pull it off, they will generate new sources of revenue and boost profit margins.
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Answers to the decade quiz (page 10) 1920s: Adhesive plaster, Car radio Insulin, Iron lung, Penicillin, Quartz crystal watch. 1930s: Ballpoint pen, Canned beer, Drive-in movies, Electron microscope, Monopoly, , Photocopier. 1940s: Aerosol spray cans, Aqualung, Colour TV, Corldess phone, Frisbee, Kidney dialysis machine, Microwave. 1950s: Black Box flight recorder, Contraception pill, Credit card, Hydrogen bomb, McDonalds, Superglue. 1960s: Artificial heart, Bar-code scanner, Hand-held calculator, Silicone breast implants, Soft contact lenses, Video disk 1970s – Food processor, Cell phone, Liposuction, , Post-It Notes, Roller blades, Video cassette, Word processor, 1980s – Cabbage Patch kids, Disposable camera, IBM personal computer, Prozac, Synthetic skin, Virtual reality (the term) 1990s –Cloning, HIV inhibitor, Java computer language, Tekno illuminating bubbles, Viagra, World Wide Web. 2000s: Artificial liver, Birth control patch, Braille glove, iPod, Self-cleaning windows, YouTube.
Maybe not exactly what General Motors and Dan Akerson envisage, but we may see more of these in the future.
One approach may be for GM to sell advertising within the car itself, he says. Akerson, who has formerly worked for telecommunications companies MCI, Nextel and XO Communications, says car-makers have no choice as the average consumer is spending more than two and half hours a day on his/her smart-phone and tablet. That tops the 16 hours a week they spend in cars as drivers or passengers. "Marry the two and you have a megatrend that we intend to harness for competitiv0e advantage." He cites a J.D. Power study that found more than two-thirds of new-car buyers own a smartphone, and, for 80% of them, connectivity strongly influences which car they buy. He also quotes similar studies in China, the world's largest auto market. Drivers want hands-free calling, navigation and automatic crash warning, in that order, he says. He terms these features as "the bread and butter" of GM's in-vehicle OnStar service that
How cool would it be to have your car automatically call up your favourite cafe when you’re a couple of kilometres away, so that your coffee and muffin are ready and paid for when you pull up?
connects drivers to live operators for directions or emergency help. OnStar has more than 6 million subscribers. As to why consumers with smart-phones would want such services, he says these features will be integrated to prevent distraction to driving. However, the United States' AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has released a report saying that hands-free technology in cars actually increases driver distraction. AAA urged the auto industry to consider disabling certain functions of voice-to-text technologies, such as using social media or interacting with email, so that they are inoperable while the vehicle is in motion. Akerson maintains that installing 3G Wi-Fi in vehicles is merely scratching the surface of what's possible. "Imagine that your vehicle can predict it needs a new battery and then automatically schedules a visit to your dealer before it dies in rush hour. How cool would it be to have your car automatically call your favourite cafe when you're a couple of kilometres away, so that your coffee and muffin are ready and paid for when you pull up?" These tech features will just be the beginning as GM seeks to entice thousands of code writers to come up with apps for its cars, he says. It's the approach that made Apple and Android dominant in their fields, and Akerson hopes a GM App Shop will one day be just as popular.
Want to add more
If you’ve got items you’d like to add to this list, or you’re wondering when something was invented or first used, send your addition/query to: Post – Editor, RSA Review, P.O.Box 37-346, Christchurch, Email – dion@waterfordpress.co.nz
a refresher workshop for senior road users
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13
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Remembering
‘essential goodness’ brings new perspective Karen Phelps Travelling to Turkey for Anzac Day as part of her prize for winning the 2013 ANZ RSA Cyril Bassett VC speech competition, 17-year-old Rachel Boyd was struck not just by the tragedy of war, but by the essential goodness of human nature and the unexpected positives to come out of a terrible situation. “I found out that although the Turkish and Anzacs were fighting against each other, they were also friends in a strange sort of way. They were both pulled into the war as allies and seemed to realise that although they were fighting for their countries, they weren’t really enemies. “We heard one story of how Turkish soldiers threw something into a New Zealand trench. The New Zealand soldiers panicked, thinking it was an explosive, but it turned out to be a packet of cigarettes with a note attached saying: ‘Here’s some cigarettes, please send some milk’.” She says her own experiences with the people of Turkey mirrored war tales such as this. She
They simply gestured to their tears, and took her hands, and without spoken language, they mourned together.
Rachel Boyd lays a poppy on the grave of 17-yearold Martin A.Persson at Gallipoli. Discovering that he was same age as her inspired Rachel to write a new speech to give at the dawn ceremony.
found the Turkish extremely friendly, especially when they heard that she was Kiwi. “When looking at some memorial monuments, Mum was tapped on the shoulder by some Turkish women. Speaking not a trace of English and Mum not an inkling of Turkish, they simply gestured to the tears on their cheeks and took her hands, and without spoken language they mourned together. “There was a beautiful statue depicting soldiers from every country that fought in World War 1; it was inscribed saying we fought but are now all friends, welcomed and treasured equally in Turkey. “We hear a lot of stories about Gallipoli and what a terrible loss of life it was for New Zealand. But the Turks also lost many men. They were just the same as us. The moment we mentioned we were Kiwis, they seemed to be really sorry to us for what happened as we are to them. It gave me a new perspective and understanding.”
Her competition-winning speech was based on World War 2, and Rachel wrote a new speech while at Gallipoli to give at the Anzac Day dawn service. Her inspiration came days earlier while walking the same path the Anzacs trod from Anzac Cove to Chunuk Bair where she came across the grave of 17-year-old Pte Martin A.Persson. “He was the same age as me and not much is known about him apart from the fact he came from Palmerston North. As I laid a poppy on his grave I decided to write about him. He’d walked the same path I had just walked, and he was killed in action. Beside him were the graves of another 17-year-old and a 19-year-old, which made me wonder if they’d been buddies who had never got to come back home.” Her first speech centred largely around one particular soldier, but after her experiences in Turkey, her second speech encompassed all three countries – New Zealand, Australia and Turkey. “I felt a little bit selfish just writing about New
Zealand after I’d experienced the connection between the New Zealanders, Australians and the Turkish. It made me decide to commemorate every soldier. One good part of the war is that it shaped the heritages of these three countries and has forged a bond, a friendship. Now Turkey is caring for our fallen soldiers who are in a foreign country, miles and miles away from home.” Her trip also involved a visit to battlefields, which, she says, was an unforgettable experience. “Although everything looks beautiful when you walk in, with flowers and pathways, there is a very dense feeling because of all the souls that have died there. I’ve been in graveyards before, but this was different; you could just feel their presence there.” This first-hand experience of what the soldiers went through, rather than just reading about it, has changed her perspective on the war, she says. “Being at Anzac Cove and walking there, my feet were sinking into broken rocks halfway up my shins. It would have been so hard to walk, especially with all the cliffs above.” While she admits she didn’t know much about the war before entering the speech competition, she discovered a personal connection to the war in Turkey when she found the grave of an uncle, George Leeming, at the Lone Pine battlefield. “His name was written on a memorial monument. His body was never found. It was really surreal knowing that one of my relatives had made it here across the ocean. It made me very proud, after knowing what the soldiers did in general, to know that one of my relatives was a part of that.”
Medals unveiled at Russell RSA Anzac Day in the Bay of Islands is slightly different from other places in that the dawn service is rotates on a three-year cycle between Russell, and the Rawhiti and Ngaiotonga maraes. The reason is that 21 men from these places did not return from the two world wars. This year a bus and several cars left Russell at 6am to arrive at Rawhiti Marae ready to march on at 6.50am. After breakfast at the marae, it was back to Russell for a service at the Returned Services Cemetery at Long Beach at 9.45am, then a civic service at the Russell Cenotaph at 11am. Refreshments and lunch followed at the Russell RSA where the chef says he served 205 meals. Several sets of medals and badges (donated to the Russell RSA various times since it was opened in 1959) were unveiled by the club patron, former Bomber Command pilot Ray Tate. The medals have been framed by Aubrey Bairstow, of NZ Medals, and mounted on a wall in the club. One set of medals from the late Lt Arthur Moran was covered separately and was unveiled by his nephew, Beau Sanders. All the medals were blessed by Rev Heather Lindeaur, whose father-in-law’s medals were also on display. “This is the best thing that has happened to this club in years”, says the president, Leo Leonard. Judi Wigzell lays an Anzac Day wreath at the Special Operations Australia & Z Special Unit memorial at Papakura Military Camp. Her father, Sgt Frank Wigzell, was one of the Z Special unit which parachuted into Borneo in March 1945 for undercover action against the Japanese. Judi has been in Borneo this year to see where her father lived with in remote areas with local tribespeople. Story: page 8.
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14 Remembering – Anzac Day ‘13
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
MANY A reason LEADS TO GALLIPOLI RSA Review editor DION CROOKS spent Anzac Week on the ground in Gallipoli. His travel and accommodation were provided and organised courtesy of Innovative Travel Co Ltd: P.O.Box 21247, Christchurch 8013; Ph 03 3653910; toll-free 0508 100111; fax 03 3655755; toll free 0508 700700; email info@innovativetravel. co.nz; website www.innovativetravel. co.nz. Yea, Anthony Haring’s pretty much your standard teenage boy. Hangs out with a set of headphones, slouches around, offers an occasional grunt. But there was nothing stereotypical about his response when his parents asked what he would like for his 18th birthday (which just happens to fall on April 26). “Anzac Day at Gallipoli,” said the lad from Western Australia. “That was on the my bucket list. Just the excuse I needed, so here we are,” says Dad Neil Haring, who runs his own bullbar/nudgebarmanufacturing business in Perth and was entrepreneur of the year in the 2013 Australian business excellence awards. Mum Kim and sister Caitlin came too, and Anthony invited grandmother Julia, who grabbed the opportunity to track down her Anzac uncle’s grave. Gallipoli and the Anzac tradition have long tweaked Anthony’s interest. Partly because Anzac Day observance – and the respect, remembrance and emotion that goes with it – is built into the Haring family ethos and tradition; partly because of the family links to the world wars; partly through the Haring children’s involvement in scouts, brownies and guides. His transformation during an afternoon tour of key Gallipoli sites a couple of days before Anzac Day was revelatory. Once he was on the ground and the Turkish guide and Gallipoli story captured his attention, Anthony’s apparent teenage ennui evaporated He was eager, all eyes and ears, as he listened, looked and learned – and helped Grandma find her uncle
Just two years out from its centenary, the 1915 Anzac invasion is beginning to be seen as a significant event on an international scale.
The Harings at the Australian memorial at Lone Pine...from left, Anthony, mum Kim, dad Neil, grandma Julia.
at the Australian memorial at Lone Pine. Worth the trip? “Too right.” Up to what he had hoped? “Even better.” And there were still the dawn and Australian services in store. The Harings’ story is both typical and atypical. Typical because almost certainly every visitor to Gallipoli has a personal reason for going. Atypical because no matter how similar some of the reasons for going may appear, no two will be the same. Each visitor’s Gallipoli rationale and experience is different, unique. Peter Eggleton, from Christchurch, discovered his grandfather’s Gallipoli and World War 1 medals, and decided to see for himself. His sister, Ruth Spittle, who teaches at a Napier primary school, was able to go with him because Anzac Day this year fell within the term holidays.
If there were people not affected by the gravitas of the occasion, they were certainly not evident – or they had been overtaken by the mood of the 5300.
England-born Peter Galloway now lives in Australia, but his father was a World War 2 bomber pilot and prisoner of war. An Anzac Day regular, he says the crucial element is remembrance and tribute to those who have fought. Paul Gurieff’s experience as a volunteer marshal last year inspired him to bring his family this year. Paul and Michelle, a young schoolteaching couple from Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, have taken a year off to travel – Anzac Day was the first booking they made. But a broader market is emerging for Gallipoli. Just two years out from its centenary, the 1915 Anzac invasion is beginning to be seen as a significant, historical event on an international scale. This reaches beyond the direct Anzac connection to those interested in history, in world events, and those capable of taking an intelligent interest in events and activities. Hence the presence of Americans, South Africans and Asians on pre-Anzac Day tours. A South African couple heard about the Gallipoli story while in Istanbul five years ago. They didn’t have time to go then, but decided that if they were there again, they would. They were back for a conference this April, and spent a day on the peninsula.
This growing and broadening interest has led to more than 3 million people now visiting Gallipoli each year. A Gallipoli “industry” has developed. Visits to Gallipoli and Anzac Day are significant contributors to the local economy. The upsurge in visitor numbers to Gallipoli has been largely fuelled by Turks. The Turks have their own monuments on the peninsula, and they hold their own commemorative services on Anzac Day alongside the Kiwis and Aussies. In fact, the New Zealand and Turkish monuments at Chunuk Bair are so close it’s not hard to mistake one for the other, and the Anzac services follow one another at side-by-side venues. There’s talk that the hordes of “battlefield tourists” could overrun the commemorative nature of the peninsula. The accusation is also levelled that many of the New Zealanders and Australians who come for Anzac Day see it as nothing more than a rite of passage or another tourist event to tick off their list. However, the example of this year’s dawn service suggests Anzac has a much deeper meaning for most who came. If there were people not affected by the gravitas of the occasion, they were certainly not evident – or they had been overtaken by the mood of the 5300 (the official count). This view is supported by the research Gallipoli author John Basarin (a Turk who moved to live in Australia in 1966) did for his doctoral thesis in 2011. His work showed the strongest motives for coming to Anzac Day at Gallipoli to be: showing gratitude for freedom now enjoyed; an act of remembrance; a commemoration service; affirming shared values. An overwhelming majority would tell others about it and recommend that others go. A big majority described the experience as emotional, and values such as self-fulfilment, warm relationships with others and a sense of belonging rated highly.
‘i felt that, however long i lived, no greater nor moving Dion Crooks
In 1961 Betty Roland described the cemetery at Anzac Cove as ‘perhaps the most moving place on Gallipoli.’
Gallipoli tourism was born in 1961 when Australian writer Betty Roland stood on the peninsula alone on Anzac Day. Roland made the trip as part of a break from her long sojourn on the Greek island of Lesbos. She got to Turkey and hired a boat at Canakkale to take her across the Dardenelles to Gallipoli. Her guide was Hector McMann, a former Black Watch and Gordon Highlanders soldier who at that time was the officer-in-charge of war graves on Gallipoli; she also had an interpreter, John, whose father was the head gardener on Gallipoli. “I had carefully considered the clothes I should wear this Anzac Day,” she wrote in her book, Lesbos, the Pagan Island. “In Australia it is a day of solemn dedication and I was going to the place where men had died, yet I could not bring myself to dress in black. The men who had died in 1915 had been little more than boys, and youth flowed hotly in their blood. “They were not of the breed to relish mournful faces and funeral clothes, so I had packed my prettiest and most becoming dress and was grateful that the day was warm enough to wear it. “I took special pains about my make-up,
using lipstick and mascara, feeling sure that this was how they would have liked it, and I added perfume. I wished that I was younger (she was 58 at the time), but felt sure “the boys” would understand.” She records their arrival at Lone Pine: “Mac got out and held the gate open for me. ‘This is Lone Pine’, he said. ‘I thought you’d like to come here first.’ I looked around. On every side the silence and a brooding sense of loneliness. ‘Am I the only one to come here on this day ?’ I asked. “Aye lass, you are,” said Mac. “The only one.” And then he turned away.” They moved on to Anzac Cove: “We looked down on a small sandy bay, tranquil in the morning sunlight. ‘And there it is. That’s Anzac Cove itself,’ Mac told me quietly. A shallow beach between two points, not more than 10 yards deep, perhaps a quarter of a mile in length, empty and deserted now with the rusty remains of an old water-condenser lying on the sand. Back in Australia, Roland wrote in the Australian Women’s Weekly of April 28, 1965 – the year that 86 of the original Anzacs returned to Gallipoli for the 50th anniversary – about her trip to Gallipoli. Of leaving Canakkale:
Remembering – Anzac Day ‘13 15
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
turkIsH GOVT out ‘TO SHOWPIECE’ ANZAC FRIENDSHIP Dion Crooks Will the Anzac Day-based commemoration at Gallipoli continue as time and generational sequence blunt the immediacy of the links? Will there be A bi-centenary commemoration in 2115? Turkish/Austrian Gallipoli expert John Basarin doesn’t pretend to know the ultimate answer, but he’s prepared to hazard a yes – on three grounds. • Precedent “Big events in history continue to be commemorated. The British commemorate the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) and the Turks commemorate the capture of Istanbul, or Constantinople as it was then (1453). “I’m sure it will be, but in a different form. I’m sure that over another 100 years, many more and different relationships will develop between these three countries. “In essence it will probably stay the same, but the format will probably be different...maybe people will be able to have ceremonies in their
own home in an electronic world.” • Politics “Gallipoli is important for Turkey not so much for its economic contribution to the country, but because of its symbolic significance. “The Turkish government wants to showcase to the world the friendship that has come from this tragic campaign, how Turkey, Australia and New Zealand have become friends, and that this is a unique position.” • Personal “This (2013) is the twelfth time I’ve been to Anzac Cove on Anzac Day. People keep asking me,’Aren’t you sick of it?’ No, I’m not because as a Turkish/Australian, I feel for the poor diggers landing at dawn not knowing what was ahead of them. On my other shoulder I feel for the Turkish soldiers waiting in trenches peering into dark sky and sea, and not knowing what’s coming. I feel for both of them every time I stand there. I still feel the same. “I’ve had some sceptics tell me that they had such a moving experience they never John Basarin: “This is the 12th time I’be been to Anzac Cove on Anzac Day. People keep asking me ‘Aren’t you sick of it?’ No, I’m not because as a Turkish/ Australian, I feel for the poor diggers landing at dawn not knowing what was ahead of them. On my other shoulder I feel for the Turkish soldiers waiting in trenches peering into dark sky and sea, and not knowing what’s coming. for both sides every time I stand there. I still feel the same.’
moment would befall me’ “I had come to Turkey by a long and devious route, and there had been some discomforts, difficulties, even minor dangers. But what of it? I had reached my goal and was on the threshold of one of the most deeply moving experiences of my life.” And Lone Pine: “No one else was there. I was the sole representative of my country and the consciousness of this weighed heavily upon me, particularly as I walked through the low wooden gate that led me to the place where some of Australia’s most illustrious dead lay. How young they were. Scarcely one of them more than 25. “After one has got over the first surge of emotion and the feeling of being near to tears, the brooding peace that lies like a benediction over all the dozen or so cemeteries on Gallipoli begins to manifest itself. There is an air timelessness. “It was rare thing to be there alone, to walk among those quiet graves, to sense the melancholy and the strange, mystical atmosphere that broods in the silence and seems to to touch the soul. I trod softly and was grateful to the little Scottish captain for leaving me alone.” Roland found Lone Pine, Chunuk Bair and Anzac Cove “the three most moving places on Gallipoli...and of these perhaps Anzac Cove
stands foremost”. “I gathered an armful of flowers – flag lilies, poppies, small white daisies and some yellow broom – and laid them on the stone of remembrance in one of the cemeteries. It was close to the sea, and here, I learnt later, is where the ‘Man with the Donkey’, Pte Simpson, lies buried...the man who went out at night with his patient little donkey and brought the wounded down to the dressing-station on the beach. On May 15, 1915, he was killed at the age of 22, yet in those few weeks he won a place in history and in the hearts of men. “The sun was sinking into the Aegean as I stood in the silent cemetery. A Turkish general (on a tour of inspection), the Scottish captain, and John, the interpreter and son of the head gardener, were with me standing to attention. I felt that, however long I lived, no greater nor more moving moment would befall me.” Betty Roland continued to write newspaper articles, books, radio and stage plays, children’s books and comic strips until she died, aged 93, in 1996. Many thousands have followed her to Gallipoli. While no two experiences will be exactly the same, very few of Roland’s Gallipoli successors would argue with her description.
Kiwis Brendon Russo and Helen Wright warm up for the dawn service at Gallipoli. Photo: John Ferguson.
expected...I’ve seen them cry about the futility. the loss of young lives they can’t comprehend.” Meanwhile Basarin remains optimistic. He detects no waning of interest in Gallipoli. Indeed, he is highly encouraged by how, over the last 20-25 years, young Kiwis, Aussies and Turks alike have embraced the Gallipoli/Anzac Day. “Gallipoli was a seminal moment in history of all three countries, and any young person who asks the question will find immediately that Gallipoli has a special page. And I think this can only get better.” Anzac Day 2013 certainly supports that view. Basarin, who has authored six books on Gallipoli, completed his doctoral thesis (Battlefield Tourism – Anzac Day Commemorations at Gallipoli) in 2011. His research, which involved interviewing 1000 Australians going to and from Gallipoli, that their strongest motives were to show gratitude for freedom they now enjoyed, to be part of an act of remembrance and a commemoration service, and to affirm shared values. An overwhelming majority of those interviewed said they would tell others about it and recommend they go. A big majority described the experience as emotional, and values such as self-fulfilment, warm relationships with others and a sense of belonging rated highly. Anzac Day Gallipoli 2013 mirrored those findings. A good 90-95% of the 5300 (the official count) at the dawn service there would have been under 35. Their exemplary behaviour and demeanour right through the night, and willing participation in the service created an atmosphere that blended reverence and revelry, commemoration and celebration in exactly the right proportions. This example strongly suggests that Anzac has deep meaning for most who came. True, some might have seen it as a rite of passage or another tourist event to tick off their list. But there was no evidence of this – which reinforces Basarin’s observation about sceptics being absorbed by the occasion, and its broader implications about the waste and futility of war. With the surge of interest from Anzac youth, the development of battlefield tourism on the Gallipoli Peninsula, and the incorporation of Gallipoli study into Turkey’s national school curriculum, the quantity of human and vehicular traffic around Gallipoli has soared in the last 10-15 years. There's now a stipulation that every Turkish
The over-riding impression from the services is that the greater the crowd participation, the greater the power and the impact of the occasion
school student has to make at least one organised excursion to Gallipoli because of its significance as the birthplace of the republic. Many groups of Turkish university students were in evidence over this year's Anzac week – it took an hour and a half to empty close to 10,000 or so of them from the Turkish service at Chunuk Bair on Anzac Day. And there’s the emerging international market as the Galliploi invasion is increasingly recognised as a significant, historical event on an international scale. This reaches beyond the direct Anzac connection to all nationalities and people. Clearly, as the direct family links to 1915 fade and loosen with time, the future of Anzac Day Gallipoli will lie with younger generations who will come because the place and the commemorations are part of their heritage, provoke thought and offer lessons. Equally clearly, those who come to Gallipoli are its most powerful marketers. And, as any marketer will tell you, they need a marketable product. So, how does Gallipoli Anzac Day rate? The over-riding impression from the services is that the greater the crowd participation, the greater the power and the impact of the occasion. The dawn service was at its most powerful with the assemblage singing that great hymn, God of our Fathers (led by the Gregory Terrace–All Hallows Gallipoli Choir, from St Joseph’s College, Brisbane), and the Turkish, Australian and New Zealand national anthems. The nuts and bolts worked a treat too. The necessary commercial stalls were tucked tastefully out of sight from the commemorative area. Nor were the operators excessively aggressive. The basic facilities were well sorted – even the toilets where these no queues, not too much smell. However, the organisers of the New Zealand service at up the hill at Chunuk Bair would do well to study the formula. In contrast , the public seemed to be shut out in a spectator role as Chunuk Bair got bogged down in military set-pieces. The answer: reduce the pageantry, involve the public more. And at the logistical level, there was a fair degree of public dissatisfaction over several issues. Entry was fairly chaotic, and it wasn’t clear what areas and what seats were available. The view from where a large chunk of the public were seated ranged from poor to almost non-existent. There was no shade as the midday sun beat fiercely towards to 30C mark. The screen for the video feed was behind these people and, any way, couldn’t be seen because of the glare from the sun; the alternative was a distant watch. Another large chunk of prime seating was reserved for “dignatories”, who arrived just before the service began. Given that public support will determine the future of these services, the Chunuk Bair organisers need to look at their priorities. As any successful marketer will tell you, you upset your major market at your peril.
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RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Lost Trails World War 2 filing cabinet available to be donated to a good home. Dark military green, four drawers, metal (heavy), good condition, locks and has original key. it would be of use to any branch. Happy to deliver to anywhere in the Auckland area. Contact: Martin Treadwell – 021 331231; martin@cat22.co.nz.
Information sought on on Ronald McKay, a New Zealander believed to have been a World War 2 RAF fighter pilot. He returned to New Zealand after the and is believed to have been a member of the RSA. He is buried in New Zealand, but the location is not known; no death certificate is available. Hugh Francis – hhfrancisnav@gmail.com. Looking for people who served with Len Harold Bridgeman, from Tariki, Stratford. Contact: Jenny Bridgeman – bridgetj@xtra.co.nz. Hazel Halloran is looking for three 21 Bn stick pins (cream and green). Her husband in 21 Bn, 2 NZEF during World War2 and she has one pin; however, she would like three more so that each of their children has one to wear. She is prepared to pay. Contact: Hazel Halloran – 35 Haszard St, Waihi 3610; 07 8638808. Does anyone know anything of or about Dave Andrews, who was a leading seaman on the Royalist? Contact: Alan Birtwistle (ex Royal NZ Navy) – 07 3476423.
A customer left the original of the photo (above) in the Raglan Copy and Video shop. It is of a man in World War 2 New Zealand naval uniform. It had the name, Jack Perry, on it. The photo was taken in Auckland by a photo studio, but there is no date on it. Contact: Sue Russell – 07 8250519; 027 6095805; marysue@ hotmail.co.nz. Max Allen, ex-Taumarunui, who did his Compulsory Military Training at Linton in the 14th intake from September 15,1954 to December 22,1954, has been trying to obtain a photograph of his unit (1 – WWCTU) to replace the one he mislaid. The New Zealand Defence Force cannot because these photos were taken by private photographers. Contact: Max Allen – maxallen2@bigpond.com. Sue Auburn is trying to locate an uncle, Stan Goodwin, who lived in Auckland in the 1980s and went to Australia for a short time when she lost touch with him. He has a son, Bevan. Contact: Sue Auburn – sue310753@hotmail.com. Wanted: Information of the four Kiwis in the 29-strong 1966 junior entry intake into the RAN College at Jervis Bay, Australia. Three of them were John M.Loader, Roly J.Hayes and John R.Louisson (who was commissioned and promoted to at least lieutenant in the mid-1970s). A 50-year reunion is being planned at the college in January 2016, and nearly 20 of the 25 Australians from that intake have been found. Four are known to have died. Contact: Brian Stewart – Power-Up Consulting, 38 Nolan Rise, Brookfield, QLD 4069, Australia; 0061 7 33743776; 0061 412 484141; b.a.stewart@bigpond.com. Relatives of Pte Oswald Henry Parker sought. He was in the Infantry Reinforcements Regimental No 42560 His last known address was 13 Everton Terrace, Wellington. Letters and photographs available. Contact: Keith Field – 5 Brentwood Ave, Nukuhau. Taupo 3330; 07 3771170; k.m.field@clear.net.nz. Paul Howard’s mother, Joan Howard (nee Court), has a photo album and correspondence sent to their uncle/brother when he was a boy from Sgt W.A.Phipps 20379. It details his journey from New Zealand to the United Kingdom during World War 2, his departure and a card from when he was captured and imprisoned. The Howards would like to pass the album to the Phipps relatives. Contact: Paul Howard – howard_paul2@sky.com. Photograph of grave available to relatives of Sgt L.G.R.Donaldson 405241, an RNZAF pilot who died,
1941 and in Stalag 3D, Germany on September 12, 1941. His POW number was 10205. Alison Hoyes will be visiting Crete with her family in July this year and would love to make contact with anyone whose father was also in the 5 Field Ambulance. Contact: Alison Hoyes – 152c Seddon St, Pukekohe, Auckland 2120; 09 2391663; 027 2391664; hoyes7@xtra.co.nz.
aged 23, on February 3, 1942. He is buried in the St Eata Church cemetery at Atcham, a small village near Shrewsbury, in Shropshire, United Kingdom. Contact: Charles H.Grant – 2 Saltney Close, London Road Estate, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, UK SY2 6SQ.
Walter Felix Stevens, aged 94, would appreciate information about surviving service members who were in the Third New Zealand General Hospital unit that fought in the Middle East. Col Gower was the man in charge. Contact: Rodney Stevens – r.jstevens@ clear.net.nz. Would anyone from the family of Leslie W E Maffey, from New Zealand, who was killed in Operation Groundsheet in Norway 1945, MD846, be interested in a Norwegian newspaper article about the operation? Asbjorn Widvey, who comes from Norway but lives in Cockle Bay, Howick, has received the paper from his brother. Contact: Asbjorn Widvey – 021 2266456; widvey@hotmail.com. Neville Brown is seeking contact with those who served in A Company, 2 Platoon during the 17th National Service intake in 1967. His interest has been awakened by a photograph on page 365 of Peter Cooke’s newly published Fit to Fight book on Compulsory Military Training and National Service. Contact: Neville Brown – 41b Browns Rd, Manurewa, Auckland 2012; 0274 266049. Do you recognise anyone anongst the group of New Zealand Public Relations Service field section staff (see photo below) celebrating Christmas Eve in the New Zealand sector of the Italian front on Deceember 24, 1943. (This photo was taken by George Frederick Kaye). Photojournalist, author and historian John G.Cosgrove is researching for a book on New Zealand’s few official war photographers, such as Kaye, Harold G.Paton, Mervyn D.Elias and George Bull. He would like to contact old soldiers who can tell him of the activities of the New Zealand Publics Relations Service, especially in Italy, and the various teams attached to it, such as the National Film Unit. He would also like to chat with old soldiers about their photography during the war in the Mediterranean campaigns. Contact: John Cosgrove – johngcosgrove@hotmail.com.
Vernon Keith Norriss (Keith)’s family would like to hear from anyone who served him in the late 1950s. Keith died June 15, 2013. Contact – Robert - robert@psltotalair.co.nz
Does the Kiwi RNZAF sergeant on the right of this photo look familiar to anyone? John Stanley is interested to know if he does. The fellow in the middle of the photo is his uncle, Sgt Jack Stanley NZ41553, of Christchurch. The photo was taken in Leon & Eddie’s bar in Brooklyn, New York. John Stanley believes it would have been between April 2, 1942 (the day when the two New Zealanders graduated from Advanced Navigation School in Rivers, Manitoba, Canada, were awarded their air navigator’s badges, and were promoted to sergeant) and April 5 (when they embarked on board ship in Halifax, Nova Scotia bound for the United Kingdom). “There is a window of opportunity to reach New York, visit Leon & Eddie’s, strike up a friendship with the three Americans, have a photo taken, get it developed, and get to Halifax.” Jack Stanley enlisted at the age of 19; he was killed in action on September 10, 1942 returning from the target of Bremen in a Wellington bomber, which crashed in Sufffolk, England. The pilot was also a New Zealander, Sgt T.F.Munro NZ415005, from Christchurch. This was Jack Stanley’s first mission. He had not been posted to a RAF squadron and was still training with 11 Operational Training Unit. John Stanley says is a reasonable assumption that Jack was caught up in a ‘1000’ bombing raid when “OTUs and virtually anything that could fly were mustered” to make up the number. The Stanley family has a Leon & Eddie’s placemat, and messages from three Americans (presumably those in the photo). They have been transcribed by an optometrist from the faded ink as: Jack (or Jim) Jones, 50 Myth St (?), Bayonne, New Jersey; Jack Taylor, Dallas, Texas; N.J.Sheelour(?), 429 Classon Ave, Brooklyn, New York. John Stanley says the bar was obviously on the Kiwis’ bucket list – P.O.Box 75330, Manurewa, Manukau 2243; 09 2666652. Photographs or information on Ernest Frederick Tait, Rifleman Unit, 4 Battalion, 3rd New Zealand Rifle Brigade 38236. Born February 6, 1893 or 1894 in Taihamete, Gisborne, died in World War 1. His niece, Shirley Dawson, would particularly like some photographs of her uncle. Contact: Shirley Dawson – jsdawson@iinet.net.au.
Contact sought with anyone who knew or of Pte Samuel Getty Bolton 9938, Medical Corps, 5 Field Ambulance. He left New Zealand in the 2nd Echelon on May 1, 1940, disembarked in the United Kingdom on June 23, 1940, sailed for Egypt on January 3, 1941, arriving on March 5, 1941. He was cabled “Missing” as at May 18, 1941. Records show he was posted as a prisoner of war in Crete on May 18, 1941, in Greece on July 1,
Two items have been handed in at the Palmerston North Cosmopolitan Club found at some time in the Club’s past. A Victory Medal engraved 63766 Pte George Paddy NZEF (below) and an old Returned Soldiers’ Association badge (right) engraved with the soldier’s service number. Pte Paddy is listed in the Auckland War Memorial Museum website database. If you have information that could unite these items with him or his family, contact George Mathew, president, Palmerston North RSA – George. Mathew@xtra.co.nz.
Janet Statham is keen to make contact with relatives of those who died or were involved in the New Zealand attack on Chunuk Bair, Gallipoli, in August 1915. The New Zealanders took Chunuk Bair (the command point on the Gallipoli Peninsula) from the Turks, but were driven back when the planned reinforcements failed to arrive. Her grandfather, Maj Frank Statham, and his brother, Clive, were both in the Otago Battalion and were killed on August 8-9, 1915. She is particularly interested in making contact with descendents of Otago Battalion men, and descendents of Lt Col William Malone, of the Wellington Battalion, who was killed at Chunuk Bair on the same day as her relatives. She wonders about the prospect of some formal service in 2015 to recognise the 100th anniversary of the Chunuk Bair offensive. She has been to Gallipoli twice and plans to go there again in 2015 to honour her my relatives. Contact: Janet Statham – janetstatham@yahoo.com.au.
2Lt Albert Victor Waetford 16/541 WWI Pioneer (Maori) Battalion is standing 3rd row from top, sixth from right (he is looking to his left). It is dated July 5, 1917 and noted as being taken at Cambridge College, England. His granddaughter, Flora Falanaki, is visiting Cambridge in September and would like to identify which college in Cambridge it was taken. Contact: Flora Falanaki – ffalanaki@orcon.net.nz.
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RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Vets, descendants get ballot quota
The Friends of Gallipoli group after the 2013 dawn service at Anzac Cove. Photo: Garry Wynne.
Friends take TEENS on ‘unique opportunity’ Dion Crooks
films, documentaries (including the outstanding Leonard Thornton-fronted Gallipoli: The New Zealand Story video), and a speech by Rachel Boyd (winner of the 2013 ANZ RNZRSA Cyril Bassett VC speech competition) – leading up to the dawn servie. By the end of the service, the Friends students were a shade stunned as what they had been part of began to sink in. It will continue to do so as they reflect over months, quite likely years. They came from underprivileged backgrounds and schools in a low socio-economic area. Their varied cultural backgrounds included Turkish, Somali and Koori (indigenous Australian). Another Friends goal is to “provide a life experience that students may not otherwise have had the chance to enjoy”. The year-10s and year-11s – drawn from Roxburgh, Hume Central and Penola Catholic colleges in the Broadmeadows area of Melbourne – visited Istanbul and southern Turkey before coming to Gallipoli for Troy, the dawn service and the Australian service at Lone Pine. Roxburgh College assistant principal Garry Wynne, who was with the group, says the students were chosen for their leadership qualities. “The Friends left it up to us as to who we chose. We looked for kids with the leadership
There’s no way you’d spurn the chance of a sleepover with a dozen teenagers, is there? Certainly not when it’s the night before the Anzac Day dawn service at Gallipoli. Certainly not when they’re all on their first time overseas. This Australian teens were at Gallipoli for the culmination of a 15-day tour of Turkey. The trip was initiated and co-ordinated by Friends of Gallipoli, a Melbourne-based, not-for-profit organisation aiming to foster friendship and interaction between young people in Australia and Turkey. The Anzac experience was the “key point of the programme”, says Friends of Gallilopi founder John Basarin, a Turk who migrated to Australia in 1973. He describes the trip as “a unique opportunity for the students to connect with a foundational event in Australian and Turkish history, to leverage the Gallipoli heritage to encompass a wider Turkish experience, and to enjoy bonds that have developed with the Turkish nation”. The youngsters were extremely enthusiastic and positive about what they had seen and done in Turkey. They appreciated the all-night “reflective programme” – a mix of music, historical items,
potential to be ambassadors for their school.” While enthusiastic about what had been a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the students, he also spoke of the significant amount of time and work the schools had invested in bringing the students’ Anzac knowledge up to scratch. Glenroy RSA president Lance Smith describes the trip as one of the most important projects aimed at the youth of Broadmeadows: “It will give them a sense of beginnings of our nation .” Each student committed to funding $5000. Friends of Gallipoli sourced sponsorship and helped students with fundraising. The Glenroy RSL donated $5000 as the foundation sponsor; support came from Rotary and local councils; Marcus Falay, from Fairy Chimneys Travel, organised the travel and accommodation at cost. The students were accompanied by Falay and Basarin, Bert Lawes (Glenroy RSA) and teacher/ chaperones funded by the three schools. • Dion Crooks spent Anzac Week in Gallipoli. His travel and accommodation were provided and organised courtesy of Innovative Travel Co Ltd: P.O.Box 21247, Christchurch 8013; Ph 03 3653910; toll-free 0508 100111; fax 03 3655755; toll free 0508 700700; email info@innovativetravel. co.nz; website www.innovativetravel.co.nz.
One fifth of New Zealand’s 2000-place allocation for the official Anzac Day commemoration at Gallipoli 2015 will be reserved for veterans and direct descendants of Gallipoli veterans. Applications for a place in the ballot will open on November 1 this year, with results announced in April 2014. A hundred double passes – 200 places in total – will be up balloted to the direct descendants, and 100 double passes to veterans of any conflict. Another 100 places will be reserved for special groups, such as youth representatives and children of Gallipoli veterans. All New Zealanders will be eligible to enter the ballot for the remaining 750 double passes – 1500 places in total. Direct descendants and veterans who were unsuccessful in their specific ballot can also apply for tickets in this category. The New Zealand government says around 40,000 New Zealanders are expected to be interested in going to Gallipoli in 2015. Gallipoli historian and educator John Basarin is hopeful the Turkish, Australian and New Zealand governments can make some arrangement for those – mainly younger people, often backpackers – who have traditionally arrived at Gallipoli unannounced just before Anzac Day. “ I hope it will be possible to provide these people with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, something they can tell their grandchildren about. This will be a very meaningful event, and many New Zealanders, Australian and Turks will want to commemorate one way or another. “Perhaps they could be accommodated somewhere that’s not part of the Anzac Cove where they look out to the Aegean Sea watching dawn rise, or at some similar location where they can be part of the ceremony. Perhaps there could be additional services at Anzac Cove, Lone Pine and Chunuk Bair at different times. This could provide the capacity to go up to 40,000 people.”
Memories of World War II Voyage Embark from the WW II spy haven of Lisbon for Guernsey, once part of the German Atlantic Wall. Arrive in Cherbourg on June 6, the 70th anniversary of D-Day, offering a variety of optional tours that include Omaha Beach, the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, Pointe du Hoc, Juno and Gold beaches and St. Mere Eglise. With two days in Honfleur, visit Caen and Bayeux, opt for a visit to Paris or Monet’s gardens of Giverny, or simply relax in the charming villages of Honfleur and Deauville. Other highlights include Boulogne-sur-Mer on France’s Opal Coast, Dover and Amsterdam.
70th Anniversary D -Day Landings 13 nights & flights
8959
$
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Per person, share twin.
Includes: • Return airfares • Transfers throughout • 1 night in Lisbon & 1 night in Hamburg • 11 night cruise onboard Azamara Journey® from Lisbon to Hamburg • All shipboard meals & entertainment onboard • Select spirits, beer & wine throughout your voyage • Port charges, government fees & gratuities
Departs NZ 01 June & Lisbon 03 June 2014
0800 538 727
UnitedTravel.co.nz
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*Terms and Conditions. Special Conditions apply. AIRFARES: Based on flying Emirates in Economy class from Auckland or Christchurch. CRUISE: Based on category 12 interior stateroom. Non refundable deposit of $800 pp due due at time of booking. Balance of cruise due by 11 March 2014. Airfare payment and ticketing required within 14 days of reservation. GENERAL: Sales end 11 March 2014 or when sold out. All prices are per person in New Zealand Dollars & subject to availability. Travel agent service fees are not included. Prices are correct at the time of printing & are subject to change without notice. Cancellation fees apply. Price is based on consecutive nights. Offer valid for new bookings only. Events beyond our control such as currency fluctuations and changes to the price of aviation fuel may result in price variations. Capacity is limited and may not be available on all flights. Airfare seat space cannot be held/confirmed until 52 weeks prior to departure. Prices are based on payment by cash or cheque only. Product is supplied by reputable suppliers with their own terms & conditions, please contact your local United Travel. UT1496
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RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
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AITKEN LH 48008 23Bn 2NZEF 20/05/2013 Dunedin ALLEYNE JD 1631995 WWII RAF 26/03/2013 Red Beach ANDERSON KJ 26/03/2013 Blenheim ANDERSON VJ 450679 WWII NZ Army 02/04/2013 Blenheim ANDREW A 624302 04/05/2013 Ashburton ANDREWS LM MN 18/03/2013 Blenheim ANNABELL KF 01/01/2012 Birkenhead APPLEFORD LA 36164 WWII 2NZEF 07/04/2013 Hastings APPLEYARD J 425351 WWII RNZAF 19/04/2012 Auckland ATKINS RA 403804 WWII 25Bn 2NZEF 18/04/2013 Te Awamutu B
BAKER E 248870 WWII 21Bn 2NZEF 03/03/2013 Auckland BARBER TJ N2101 WWII 2NZEF 04/04/2013 Hamilton BARKER R NZ439107 18/03/2013 Tauranga BARRON JEL WWII RAF 04/03/2013 Glenfield BARRON RI Q855039 3FD Regt RNZA 18/05/2013 Christchurch BEALING FJ 1884731 WWII Royal Engs 10/05/2013 Wanganui BEAUCHAMP NM 443265 WWII 21/04/2012 Hanmer Springs BECKETT AB 528997 04/04/2013 Tauranga BELL D CHX4103 WWII 23/02/2013 Ashhurst BERLAND HC 435595 03/03/2013 Dunedin BIOLETTI AL 64323 WWII 29 & 30Bn 2NZEF 12/04/2013 Devonport BISHOP A NZ12458 07/12/2012 Christchurch BISHOP WE 22579319 02/03/2013 Auckland BLACK PJ 22615 WWII 7Eng 12/04/2013 Rangiora BLACKMAN GE 426090 LAC RNZAF 23/04/2013 Dunedin BLAKE HL 811193 NZWRAC 06/05/2013 Matamata BLAKEMORE ED 443090 WWII 25Bn 2NZEF 11/11/2013 Auckland BLAKEY A 817951 WWII JForce 22Bn 12/04/2013 Hastings BOWERS MD 540249 CMT RNZN 01/03/2013 Hastings BOWMAN JE 2329576 RAF 30/04/2013 Hamilton BOYD DP 4313454 WWII RNZAF 21/02/2013 Invercargill BRACKEN PA N443531 WWII 25Bn 2NZEF 12/06/2013 Wanganui BRADY WP 569547 1Bn NZReg, Malaya 22/02/2013 Wairoa BRANTHWAITE A 818561 CMT 11/04/2013 Kaiapoi BREMNER DA 528316 11/04/2013 Tauranga BRIERLEY E 6090266 WWII NZ Army 17/03/2013 Pukekohe BROADBENT RA NZ8573 Submarines 07/03/2013 Hamilton BROCK JD NZ8948 WWII RNZN 20/05/2013 Pukekohe BROUGH EM 267974 WWII 06/03/2013 Blenheim BROWN HJL NZ11699 WWII RNZN 13/04/2013 Invercargill BROWN MAA X76059 RNZAF 29/05/2012 Hamilton BROWN RJ NZ16043 RNZN 12/04/2013 Hawarden BRYANT R 724402 05/03/2013 Hastings BRYANT TA 664785 JForce 2NZEF 11/04/2013 Mosgiel BRYMER JC 640419 JForce 2NZEF 17/03/2013 Hamilton BULLEN TJ P/MX723779 RNZN 08/04/2013 Auckland BURKE L 204171 Korea 15/12/2012 Tauranga BURNS RA D709392 CMT TF 24/03/2013 Porirua BURROW WA 282604 WWII 2Amn Coy, 2NZEF 07/01/2013 Titirangi BURT MC 18305 WWII 26Bn 2NZEF 06/03/2013 Christchurch BUSBY JA 28179 WWII 29/04/2013 Auckland BUSH RK 9422 12/04/2013 Auckland C
CARSS R 327302 04/03/2013 Auckland CARSWELL SK 403321 WWII 16/04/2013 Tauranga CASWELL J 3225219 WWII RAF 24/04/2013 Wairoa CHICK MD 283696 WWII 23Bn 2NZEF 07/04/2013 Christchurch CHILCOTT P 23390817 British Army 21/12/2012 Hamilton CHISHOLM JA 43158 WWII RNZAF 25/03/2013 Invercargill CHURCHMAN AEJ 22800263 Kenya Army 18/03/2013 Whangaparaoa CLARE RJ 431877 RNZAF, Army 27/04/2013 Nelson CLARK AW 14793 Hong Kong RNZN 27/03/2013 Mosgiel CLARK GD 352198 25/04/2013 Waihi Beach
CLARK KW 12836 23Bn 2NZEF 05/03/2013 Dunedin CLARKE JR 926874 CMT intake 18 16/03/2013 Mosgiel CLOUGH NR 645051 NZ Army 14/05/2013 Morrinsville CODDINGTON RF 10160 WWII RNZN 10/06/2013 Hamilton COLLICOAT JER NZDA 1790 28/05/2013 Auckland COLLINS (NEE BROWN) EM 809598 WWII NZ Army 14/04/2013 Taradale CONNOR CS 784308 CMT 21/03/2013 Nelson CRAFT F 415169 WWII RNZAF 26/05/2013 Auckland CRAIG DS 207898 Korea 16Fd Regt 15/04/2013 Christchurch CROSSMAN HR 45470 WWII 23 & 37Bn 01/05/2013 Nelson CURRIE T 3526840 01/04/2013 Tauranga CURTIS MJ 924498 KForce 08/03/2013 Karitane D
DAINTRY AE SSX 830581 RN 15/03/2013 Rangiora DARR KA 37513 WWII 19/08/2012 Hamilton DAVIES BG 324310 WWII RN 11/03/2013 Pukekohe DAVIES RE 14879541 WWII 17/04/2013 Auckland DAVIS J 270086 WWII NZ Army 08/04/2013 Christchurch DAVISON B 62379 WWII RNZN 24/03/2013 Auckland DAWSON IB NZ7051 WWII Navy 15/04/2013 Howick DEAS LW 630686 NZ Army, RNZAF 04/03/2013 Stanmore Bay DEWAR ET 666053 2NZEF JForce 6NZGH 24/03/2013 Rangiora DILREW P 4310563 WWII RNZAF 08/06/2013 Blenheim DOGGETT H 633918 WWII JForce 12/04/2013 Hastings DOUGLAS FW 73622 WWII 35Bn 3Div 05/04/2013 Thames DOW AH 438921 RNZAF, RCAF, RAF 01/05/2013 Wanganui DUNCKLEY G.G NZ 7262 RNZN 13/03/2013 Oamaru E
EASTERBROOK EC NZ442462 WWII RNZAF 21/05/2013 Taradale ECROYD RJ 436853 WWII 24Bn 2NZEF 01/03/2013 Auckland EDWARDS LG CJX199193 WWII 04/04/2013 Te Puke EGGLETON GP 10064 WWII RNZNVR 06/04/2013 Christchurch ELSDEN B W/98343 WWII 17/03/2013 Auckland EVANS FT 447737 WWII 21Bn 2NZEF 25/02/2013 Pukekohe EVANS KR 688560 2Fd Sqd RNZE 03/04/2013 Taradale EWERS RG NZ11209 27/05/2013 Mt Maunganui F
FINCH RC 447847 WWII 19Arm Regt 2NZEF 05/08/2012 Mosgiel FOGARTY JE 616911 WWII 22Bn 2NZEF 23/02/2013 Hamilton FORRESTER TL FX 512836 RN 28/02/2013 Tauranga FOSTER GS 22801657 Korea, British Army 05/03/2013 Cheviot FOWELL DL 456083 WWII NZ Army LCPL Mounted Rfl 16/02/2013 paeroa FRANCIS RN 1148 27/02/2013 Tauranga FRASER HC 279479 WWII 29/05/2013 Invercargill FRASER MD NZ13211 WWII RNZN 31/03/2013 Cambridge FRAZER CJ 27519 WWII 23/04/2013 Auckland FREEME CH 48605 WWII 18Armd Regt 24/04/2013 Wanganui FRYER RP 712381 1Fd Engs Regt RNZE 17/02/2013 Taradale G
GAFFANEY VJ RNZN 7425 WWII RNZN 13/05/2013 Katikati GALL A NZ2131 WWII 21/12/2012 Hamilton GAPPER HR 50656 WWII NZ Army 10/10/2011 Auckland GARLAND K 461406 04/04/2013 Christchurch GAWITH AA NZ2155/41012 WWII RAF RNZAF 08/03/2013 Nelson GLASTONBURY TJA 448022 WWII 2nd Wellington 12/05/2013 Wanganui GOFFIN BD 14675757 WWII RAC 18/02/2013 Invercargill GOLDSBURY RM 203602 WWII KForce 16Fd Regt 28/01/2013 Hamilton GOODWIN RE 81599 WWII 08/04/2013 Motueka GRAHAM W 22320384 05/02/2013 Hamilton GRANT A 1827308 02/06/2013 Auckland GRIMSDELL J 198588 WWII NZ Army 19/03/2013 Auckland
GROOTVELD J 38439 Malaya 13/02/2013 Invercargill GUEST AWG Home Guard 02/09/2012 Auckland GYDE RG 646909 NZ Army 19/05/2013 Wanganui H
HAANING J 131235 04/04/2013 Glen Eden HAGGERTY CA 626701 WWII 16Bn 2NZEF 15/02/2013 Invercargill HALL MJ 73833 27/03/2013 Auckland HAMMOND KF 207856 Korea 12/05/2013 Tauranga HANCOX AE 60610 25Bty 4Fd 2NZEF RNZA 03/10/2012 Wellington HANDLEY BJ 514611 NZ Army 08/04/2013 Morrinsville HANDLEY GJ 18069 WWII 09/03/2013 Oxford HANIFIN CF 896763 National Service Infantry 13/03/2013 Temuka HARDY PF 3131601 RAF 12/03/2013 Taradale HARMAN E F128 WWII RNZNVR 10/03/2013 Tauranga HAWORTH RE 620265 WWII JForce 24/01/2013 Katikati HEENY T 204273 WWII 2NZEF 30/05/2013 Hastings HELLYER LF 4311631 RNZAF 16/03/2013 Oamaru HENDREY CB 41874 2NZEF 18/04/2013 auckland HENRY RG 811892 WWII 2Div Cav, 2NZEF 08/05/2013 Morrinsville HENRY RJ 42708 WWII 3 Div Sigs 03/04/2013 Taradale HEREWINI R X210448 Korea, Malaya, Borneo, NZSAS 26/02/2013 Waiuku HERLES H 281-72-36 Korea, US Navy 25/02/2013 Christchurch HERRIOTT LS 628021 2NZEF 07/05/2013 Dunedin HIGHET JD 295448 WWII 2NZEF 05/01/2013 Hamilton HINA PK A734022 5WWCT 22/05/2013 Waitotara HODGES LG W/364 WWII RNZNVR 28/05/2013 Hastings HOLFORD SR 712242 04/04/2013 Wellington HORSLEY AG 35480 WWII 20Bn 2NZEF 23/03/2013 Thames HOUGHTON RJ 333921 27/03/2013 Waihi Beach HOWIE RH 439445 WWII RNZAF 26/02/2013 Morrinsville HUNTER B 67888 WWII 35Bn 02/03/2013 Pukekohe HUNTER RA NZ432815/630779 WWII NZ Army, RNZAF 25/05/2013 Whangarei HUNTER RJ 623312 WWII ASC 29/03/2013 Taradale HUTCHISON J 708944 04/03/2013 Waipawa HUTT A 896689 25/01/2013 Christchurch I
INGRAM EM 143938 30/04/2013 Invercargill J
JACKS R 2817779 R.E. WWII Japan & Korea Seaforth Highlanders 01/03/2013 Temuka JAINE JK 395832 WWII 20/02/2013 Mt Maunganui JENKINSON DM 14132105 WWII British Army 29/04/2013 Christchurch JENNYNS B NZ10094 WWII RNZN 04/03/2013 Ruawai JEWELL CM 72037 RNZAF 06/04/2013 Taradale JOHNSTON NF 453468 WWII NZ Army 15/04/2013 Blenheim JONES EO 31151 WWII NZ Army 18/04/2013 Howick JONES ES 665500 WWII NZANS 08/06/2013 Dargaville JONES RH P/MX99571 WWII 04/11/2012 Mt Maunganui JOY IH 817428 15/04/2013 Dunedin K
KEENAN MD 688414 RNZN 01/03/2013 Morrinsville KERBY AN 186170 WWII RNZASC 24/02/2013 Hamilton KINZETT CR 207861 Korea 16Fd Regt 16/04/2013 Nelson L
LANE R 206017 28/12/2012 Christchurch LANE WH 34572 NZ Army 01/05/2013 Wanganui LARSEN LH 429978 WWII RNZAF 17/05/2013 Auckland LASHLIE AH 236376 WWII 01/03/2013 Tauranga LEIGH TJ P49946 27/5/2013 RNZMP (TF) Mount Maunganui LOCKETT RO 516061 09/03/2013 Waihi Beach LOGAN RW 212374 13/04/2023 Waipawa LOXTON RWD NZ436684 WWII NZ Army, RNZAF 02/04/2013 Auckland LUCAS WG 139510 WWII 2NZEF 08/05/2013 Green Island M
MACK A 01/06/2012 Auckland MACKENZIE (NEE JONES) AB 820020 WWII WAAC
29/05/2013 Christchurch MACNAUGHTAN K 803108 29/11/2012 Te Kuiti MALCOLM KP 624375 07/04/2013 Taumarunui MALCOLM L 34261 WWII NZ Army 01/05/2013 Hastings MANLY BJ 13970 23/01/2013 Waihi Beach MARSH AL E133861 WWII RNZAF 26/03/2013 Ashburton MARSH JJ 70761 WWII 36Bn 16/03/2013 Invercargill MARSH TJE L13350 WWII Navy 04/04/2013 Orewa MARSHALL JG 642195 & 444826 25/03/2013 Dunedin MARTIN AF 547352 2NZEF Postal Corp 23/05/2013 Dunedin MAY JG 326377 CMT 03/03/2013 Whangarei MCASEY AB 73603 Vietnam RNZAF 06/06/2013 Hamilton MCAULIFFE B 98034 WWII RNZAF 02/03/2013 Auckland MCDONALD A NZ422465 09/01/2013 Christchurch MCDONNELL ED 14583 WWII 2NZEF 05/12/2012 Hamilton MCGEORGE L 824799 CMT 05/06/2013 Christchurch MCGREGOR DJ 405886 WWII 4Fd Regt 26/05/2013 Hamilton MCGREGOR DR 4211611 WWII RNZAF RCAF RAF 29/03/2013 Wanganui MCGREGOR TB 4311650 WWII RNZAF 17/04/2013 Howick MCKUBRE HT 71315 RNZAF 17/02/2013 Taradale MCLAREN AE 374486 NZ Army 20/03/2013 Blenheim MCLEOD MR 636610 WWII NZ Army 15 Reinforcements 21/05/2013 Taradale MCLEOD RJ 676139 21/01/2013 Papamoa MCQUILLAN J 80509 WWII 2NZEF 23/12/2012 Tauranga MCSHERRY K 1810 Palestine Police 13/02/2013 Hamilton MEXTED LW 436961 WWII 3Div 08/05/2013 Whangarei MICHIE FC 810273 62Bty 13/05/2013 Matamata MILLER DW 441388 WWII 11/06/2013 Mt Maunganui MILLER LJ 644724 27Bn BCOF Japan 15/04/2013 Kaiapoi MILLER SM 441719 RNZAF 19/03/2013 Blenheim MILLETT TEG 1356965 WWII RAF 26/03/2013 Taradale MOORE EW NZ43206 WWII RNZAF 25/05/2013 Hastings MOORE M 36157/1837097 WWII 4Medium Regt 01/04/2013 Hamilton MORTENSEN MW 356661 Vietnam 08/03/2013 Auckland MOSTON G W3759 WWII 25/05/2013 Auckland MOWAT LE 444659 6Fd Rgt 2Div Arty 19/04/2013 Dunedin MOXHAM JR 528533 NZ Army 19/04/2013 Taradale MUIR MV 433340 WWII RNZAF 16/02/2013 Invercargill MULHANE A 13359 Ldg Cook RNZN 09/05/2013 Dunedin MURRAY E 2052169 WWII 14/05/2013 Auckland MURRAY-COWPER DS 635304 & 78068 WWII RAF RNZAF 13/04/2013 Whangarei N
NAPIER E 79179 WWII 17/05/2013 Blenheim NEAL VC 9477 WWII RNZN 27/12/2012 Tauranga NEWBY AC 75428 Malaya RNZAF 14Sqn 23/02/13 Wanganui NEWTON BJ 934370 10/03/2013 Dunedin NICHOLLS HH 5106676 WWII 23/02/2013 Tokoroa NUTIRA MH 823796 RNZA 27/03/2013 Kaiapoi O
OLIVER CA 635630 05/12/2012 Tauranga ORBELL AD 14441151 WWII British Army 27/04/2013 Taradale O’SULLIVAN NI 2563462 WWII RAF 16/11/12 Howick P
PACKER EC R334339 MN 21/03/2013 Matamata PANKHURST NH R305003 WWII Malaya MN 03/05/2013 Nelson PARNELL RE 14106230 National Service British Army 65Arty Regt 26/02/2013 Katikati PAUL J 1895327 WWII RAF 13/05/2013 Auckland PAYNE R 207770 15/03/2013 Christchurch PEARSE JG 466200 03/02/2013 Papamoa PENGELLY RD 623700 NZ Army 30/05/2013 Christchurch PENNY WG 815682 24Bn 2NZEF 12/05/2013 Dunedin PERRY CLP 4217254 WWII LAC RNZAF 30/04/2013 Dunedin PETTIT HS 411444 WWII RNZAF 03/04/2012 Waikanae & Wellington PEYCHERS KF 455901/206541 WWII J & KForce, NZ
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RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
THE LAST POST WE WILL REMEMBER THEM
Army 10/04/2013 Nelson PICKERING EJ 427771 WWII RNZAF 11/12/2012 Tauranga PIKE TL D/MX 712189 WWll RN CPO 15/04/2013 Geraldine PIPES LJ 1590227 WWII RAF 15/04/2013 Auckland PLANT FM C/MX59454 WWII RN 04/11/2012 Taradale POFF HJ 439358 WWII RNZAF 03/05/2013 Christchurch POOLE ML 35499 25/04/2013 Nelson POULSON WC 10842 Vietnam Navy 25/03/2013 Howick PRATT SM 402642 WWII RNZAF 14/05/2013 Pukekohe PRENTICE D 595831 RNZAMC 28/04/13 Auckland PRINGLE AG 106089 30/04/2013 Dunedin R
RANGI TH R213087 Vietnam, Malaya, Borneo, Korea, 1RNZIR 08/06/2013 Wellington REAY ME C/5422 WWII RNZN 28/04/2013 Hastings REED E 48101 08/03/2013 Christchurch RENDLE LE NZ 431098 WWII RNZAF 18/03/2013 Hastings ROBERTSON TR 40133 Malaya RNZIR 23/05/2013 Invercargill ROBSON DS 241666 WWII 23Bn 2NZEF 28/03/2013 Kaiapoi RODERICK M 551339 CMT NZ Army 17/03/2013 Hastings ROGERSON SS 8003 WWII RNZN 09/04/2013 Wanganui ROOKE TE 342633 NZ Army 28/03/2012 Auckland ROSS R 463467 09/04/2013 Warkworth ROSSITER JS 677565 24/03/2013 Ashhurst ROSSITER JT 657174 JForce 13/05/2013 Taradale ROWELL NH 22/05/2012 Papakura RUTH JL 22418215 Korea, NZ Army 18/04/2013 Red
Beach RYDER CL 436179 WWII RNZAF 02/06/2013 Mt Maunganui S
SEATH CR 447779 WWII 24/05/2013 Mt Maunganui SELBIE R W105740 WWII Royal Art UK Defence 28/03/2013 Wanganui SHAW D 571714 CMT 13/05/2013 Hastings SHEEHAN P NZ15318 03/03/2013 Christchurch SHEEHN PJ 15318 RNZN 09/03/2013 Christchurch SHEERIN CL 33273 WWII 14/05/2013 Tauranga SHERBORNE WRJ 653599 WWII 2NZEF 22/04/2013 Taradale SIMPSON VH 458612 CMT 21/12/2012 Hamilton SMAILL JC 575/180711 WWII 27Bn 2NZEF 01/04/2013 Wellington SMITH JAP PSKX816060 Korea RN 12/03/2013 Invercargill SMITH NL 80005 WWII 10 REINF, 19Armd Regt 09/03/2013 Wanganui SNOW JHD 43/1727 WWII RNZAF 20/02/2013 Thames SORLEY TB CJX 37550 WWII RN 21/11/2012 Mt Albert SPARKS WA 422075 WWII RNZAF RAF 26/03/2013 Christchurch SPOONER EM 428162 09/11/2012 Hamilton SPURWAY G NZ443114 WWII RNZAF 03/04/2013 Hamilton STACK NTG 19737 WWII 2NZEF 23/04/2013 Thames STEWART RJ 31896 WWII Div Sigs 2NZEF 03/06/2013 Christchurch STRINGER ET 16841 WWII 2NZEF 25/03/2013 Rangiora STROTHER AD 391512 WWII RNZAF 19/05/2013 Whangaparaoa STROUD JJ 185680 WWII 2NZEF 10/02/2013 Inver-
cargill SUCKLING WA 452882 WWII 3Div 30/05/2013 Katikati SUTTON K NZ441856 09/06/2013 Auckland SUTTON PE 452212 WWII NZ Army 23/03/2013 Nelson SWINERD KH 4215922 WWII RNZAF 16/05/2013 Titahi Bay T
TAYLOR CJ 35545 22/02/2013 Dunedin TAYLOR WH NZ443078 WWII RNZAF 31/05/2013 Hastings TEMPLETON JA 215300 Chaplancy No A11 10/05/2013 Dunedin THOMPSON MW 46450 Singapore, Malaya 2 & 1Bn 1RNZIR 04/03/2013 Wanganui THOMSON AL 818288 2GH Italy 24/05/2013 Ashburton THORPE LC 7564 WWII Navy 09/04/2013 Papatoetoe TIPPETT LW 75687 WWII RNZAF RAF 20/02/2013 Devonport TOMLINSON LJ 927835 CMT, ANZAC Sqn Armd C Regt 09/05/2013 Mosgiel TRELOAR KR 827496 27/09/2012 Te Puke TURNER MO 61625 WWII 14NZ Forestry 11/06/2013 Matamata TURNER MRA NZ4314332 WWII RNZAF 24/12/2012 Tauranga TURNER TE 328981 06/04/2013 Mt Maunganui TURNER WJ 448260 WWII 24Bn 2NZEF 06/04/2013 Feilding TURRALL JD 44324 WWII 23/02/2013 Cambridge V
VINE W 431599 WWII RNZAF 18/05/2013 Papakura W
WAITE WF 1833171 WWII RAF 31/01/2013 Hamilton WALKER AJ 4217266 WWII RNZAF 22/04/2013 Riverton WALKER AJ 421356 WWII 27/05/2013 Mt Maunganui WALKER BE 34742 WWII NZ INF WAC 05/05/2013 Marton WALKER F 440248 24/04/2013 Waihi Beach WALKER J 23633211 British Army 24/03/2013 Howick WALLACE NF 372976 WWII 25Bn 2NZEF 13/05/2013 Hamilton WALLBANK AE W/231455 WWII Commandos 30/01/2013 Hamilton WARD A 33274 16/03/2013 Napier WARDEL TW 10155 WWII RNZN 08/03/2013 Northcote WARDS M 434730 WWII 11/02/2013 Auckland WARE EED NZ42486 WWII RNZAF 20/11/2012 Auckland WEEKS O 5460 11/04/2013 Tauranga WHIPP S 38303 MN 29/05/2013 Blenheim WHITE J 43935 / 431866 WWII NZ Army, RNZAF 05/06/2013 Papatoetoe WHITING H 331370 NZ Army 13/03/2013 Red Beach WICKENS W 1420054 05/12/2012 Christchurch WILHELMSEN LH 27217 WWII 17/03/2013 Dunedin WILLIAMS NMB 7418 WWII RNZN 04/04/2013 Christchurch WILSON DD 14027059 NZ Army 11/02/2013 Auckland WILSON TW WWII MN 21/04/2013 Mt Maunganui WOOD AS 623152 WWII Armd 22/01/2013 Nelson WRIGHT MM 820451 WWII 08/02/2013 Invercargill WRIGLEY TD 34261 RNZAF 09/05/2013 Whangarei Y
YOUNG IH 634077 NZ Army 1Canterbury Regt 02/04/2013 Christchurch YOUNG PA 40486 WWII RNZAF 13/04/2013 Wanganui
HORSE HONOURED AT ANNUAL ANZAC SERVICE Each April 25 a dedicated group gathers at a memorial cairn near Bulls for one of New Zealand’s more unusual Anzac services. They come to remember and honour horses – and one horse in particular. The Friends of Bess group seeks to keep alive the memory of Bess, one of only four New Zealand horses to return from World War 1, and the only one to leave with the main body of soldiers and make it home. The group gathers at the Bess Memorial, near Bulls, to honour all 3817 New Zealand horses that served during the war. When Bess died on land close to Flock House in 1934, Guy Powles, her owner of 20 years, erected the memorial. Powles, who was a lieutenant colonel in the Wellington Mounted Rifles, was allocated Bess when she was a four-year-old. He rode her during the war and they were re-united when she returned in 1920. He became commander of the G.H.Q school at Trentham and then headmaster of Flock House, an agricultural training school for dependants of war veterans. The square-shaped memorial is topped by a large rock and is inscribed with two memorial plaques. One denotes the places where Bess
The Bess Memorial, near Flock House, Bulls.
served during and after the war; The other bears an Arabic inscription which translates to “In the Name of the Most High God” – the English translation of her original Arabic name, Zelma (Powles renamed her Bess in 1914). The service at the cairn was initiated in 2004 by Murray Haitana (Kaikanawa Horses), Greg
Bradley (Mounted Rifles) and Warren Jansen, who had worked for Powles, who returned to sheep farming after leaving the army. In 2011, a call went out to horsemen to camp at Flock House and come to the memorial for a 9am service. About 100 turned up in pouring rain. Friends of Bess hopes to publish an information book on Bess for the World War 1 centenary, and to provide better public access to and protection for the memorial site Bess was bred at Matawhero in South Wairarapa in 1910 by Drummond McMaster. She was bought in 1912 by Frederick Alfred Deller. On August 8, 1914 the black thoroughbred was gifted to the New Zealand government. After training with Powles and Wellington Mounted Rifle Brigade during 1914, she left Wellington in October 1914 – along with 3816 other horses, 354 officers and 7412 other ranks. Bess was in Egypt , Sinai, Palestine, France and the victory parade in London, Germany and the victory parade in Berlin; and hunting in England during her quarantine period. She arrived back in Wellington on July 6, 1920. accompanied by three other military horses – Gen Andrew
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Russell’s Dolly, Capt Richard Riddiford’s Beauty and Lt Col George King’s Nigger. From 1920-22, Bess and Powles appeared shows, hunts and eventing. From 1922-30 Bess was based on the Motu Kowhai and Totu Totara (Marshall) properties, and bred four foals. From 1930-34, she was ridden daily on farm-inspection tours at Flock House. Bess died there on October 29, 1934 from a cerebal haemorage while on run Powles , who died in 1951 after leaving the army and returning to farming, wrote that a mounted solider’s horse was “more than a friend, but part of the soldier’s very life”. Bess was “an ideal charger, a sound hunter”. “She could see at night like a cat. With her excellent paces, steady, unruffled temper, she was a delightful hack to ride. She had a wonderful constitution and was fit and sound at 25 years. Like a good warhorse, she died in service, dropping dead when out on the run carrying her master.” Information: Fred Macdonald, Friends of Bess, P.O.Box 15013, Otaki 5542; 06 3646616; 021 1468938; fearless_fred@clear.net.nz.
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20 Remembering – Anzac Day 2013
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
anzac industry significant – but not tourisM ‘biggie’ Gallipoli guide Bulent Korkmaz shares his name with a famous Turkish soccer player, the first man to play 100 games for his country and a defender who was named in the 2002 World Cup tournament team. But the Gallipoli Bulent (“call me Bill,” he tells his followers) is fast establishing his own international reputation. He has been guiding on Gallipoli for 16 years, the last six for Eceabat-based Crowded House Hotel and Tours; he comes highly recommended by former clients and he has an endorsement from Lonely Planet as the man to get if you want to see and understand the Gallipoli battle and battlefields. Bulent is a home-grown talent. He has lived all his life on the peninsula, his father’s uncle fought at Gallipoli, and the Gallipoli story is part of the folklore and “there were always stories”. He says around 80% of Turks have “a very good idea of what’s what”. Becoming a guide requires four years of university study and certification from the Ministry of Tourism. However, he says he has not done any formal study of Gallipoli and is definitely not an historian. His presentation combines information and entertainment. He engages with his audience in a relaxed manner, and uses plenty of anecdotes to get his historical message across. In other words, he concentrates on telling it through the people involved, which makes it interesting, entertaining and informative. It’s an 11-months-a-year, seven-days-a-week business for him. He’s out there every day from March to November; things slow down from December to February when tour sizes range from one to six or seven tops. Bulent estimates that over a year, around 50,000 foreigners and 3 million Turks visit Gallipoli. A fifth of the foreigners come around Anzac Day, but there’s a fairly steady stream over the rest of the year.
RSA Review editor DION CROOKS spent Anzac Week on the ground in Gallipoli. His travel and accommodation were provided and organised courtesy of Innovative Travel Co Ltd: P.O.Box 21247, Christchurch 8013; Ph 03 3653910; toll-free 0508 100111; fax 03 3655755; toll free 0508 700700; email info@innovativetravel.co.nz; website www.innovativetravel.co.nz. No wonder he has little time for holidays, although he is planning a trip to Australia and New Zealand in 2015. That’ll be an opportunity to catch up with the many Anzacs he has met on the job. And, yes, he speaks English with something of an Australian accent: “I’d say 90% of visitors to Gallipoli are from Australia and New Zealand. I guess the accent comes with the territory”. But his stance is neutral and even-handed; he gives both sides of the Gallipoli, with the proviso that Turkish groups generally want to hear more about their involvement. “If they’re a Turkish military group, though, I’ll definitely take the Turkish side”. Curly questions? Generally not a problem. “But the British army sometimes sends over groups of historians or medical people or logisticians for three or four days. That’s intensive and they can ask some pretty difficult questions.” Bulent is one of five guides who work solely on Gallipoli – “no time for Troy or anywhere else”. His homework involves reading books, listening to people, and roaming the peninsula hills in winter, exploring following old maps, exploring trenches, reading headstones. And has all this time hoofing around battlefields affected how he views war and peace? “When I’m exploring on my own time, I think a lot about a whole generation of young men who were lost simply because a bunch of politicians said go and fight.”
The Gallipoli battlefields are a significant contributor to tourism in this area. They are part of what what we have to offer...a reason for visitors to come, and a reason to stay another day or two. – Huseyin Yalman
Bullent Korkmaz: Home-grown Gallipoli guide of 16 years who adopts a neutral stance when explaining what took place between the Turks and the Anzacs in 1915 – except for when he has Turkish military groups.
With the surge of interest from Anzac youth, the development of battlefield tourism, and the incorporation of Gallipoli study into Turkey’s national school curriculum, the quantity of both human and vehicular traffic around Gallipoli has soared in the last 10-15 years. There’s now a stipulation that every Turkish school student has to make at least one organised excursion to Gallipoli because of its significance as the birthplace of the republic. Many groups of Turkish university students were in evidence over this year’s Anzac week – it took an hour and a half to empty close to 10,000 or so of them from the Turkish service at Chunuk Bair on Anzac Day. Says Gallipoli expert John Basarin: “It’s not unusual see couple of hundred buses every day as people come to learn their history, and look at the spaces where people fought and died. That’s a good thing, but it comes with the inherent risk and danger of destroying what you have come for.” However, he is confident that the Turkish government is aware and mindful of the danger. Gallipoli has been declared a national park, and you cannot build anything there unless you have a permit. Basarin believes the geography will preserve the area: “It has the main facilities like roads, there are some memorials, and there are a few people trying to sell you trinkets, but in localised places. As soon as walk a few metres away from those places, you are in absolute awe of the place. There’s no one there... it makes you feel as if you’re absorbing the absolute atmosphere of the place.” The Gallipoli battlefields and Anzac Day events have obviously developed into a substantial tourist industry. It’s of such significance to Kiwis and Aussies that many of us assume it’s the key to the region’s economy. Not quite.
Huseyin Yalman, manager Canakkale, across on the Asia from Gallipoli, puts it in per came to New Zealand in 200 government trade mission, rat major industry. “We supply fruit and vegeta has a population of around 19 hours away). Then we have th has 15,000-20,000 permanen 30,000 university students co “Then we have tourism. Troy The Gallipoli battlefields are a They are part of what we hav visitors to come, and a reason two. They peak around Anzac Basarin quotes 2007 figures impact of the 10,000-15,000 Gallipoli as something like $NZ another five years, plus the con visitors, and those figures w But in terms of the Turkish hosts 30 million people a yea Quite apart from its historica is an enticing holiday spot. It nice country...rural in nature, in close proximity, a reason easily accessible, friendly and h waterfront towns (Canakkale a connected by a 10-minute fer For many Kiwis, it’s not th parts of home. Even down to t mining in the area. Says Huseyin Yalman: “Ther would destroy the attraction waterways, and ruin our wat
‘what started as an interest became a hobby, and then Dion Crooks Gallipoli/Anzac Day et al – friendship arising from a tragic event – is a phenomenon that New Zealand, Australia and Turkey can showcase to the world. That from a Turkish-Australian who, over the past 40 years, has devoted huge time, effort and energy into fostering relationships between the three countries “We have a very interesting situation where New Zealanders, Australians and Turks commemorate a tragic event (a war) together, and talk about peace and friendship rather than anything else that was probably in the minds of people 100 years ago,” says Vecihi (John) Basarin. “It’s a situation not replicated enough around the world. The famous words of Turkish president Kemal Ataturk in 1934 – ‘There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us...’ - actually set the tone, the platform for this friendship we’re enjoying today. And I’m very
happy and honoured to be part of this process.” Istanbul-born Basarin – son of a Turkish Army officer, a university-qualified chemical engineer – migrated to Australia in 1973 with a suitcase in his hand and $50 in his pocket. He believes the Gallipoli spirit was well and truly at work then: “The friendship shown by Australians has been overwhelming in many respects. In 40 years, I’ve never felt anything untoward.” Like the vast majority of Turks, he barely knew that New Zealanders and Australians had been at Gallipoli: “We were told at school that Britain and its dominions came to Gallipoli. ‘Dominions’ meant nothing to us”. In Australia, he quickly found out how important the Anzac involvement was to Australia and Australians....an almost spiritual birth of the country. He found it was pretty similar to what had happened in Turkey post World War 1. Basarin first visited Gallipoli in 1956 – as a
10-year-old, with his father. “In those days, there was hardly anything on the peninsula; we saw a shepherd and some sheep, but that was basically it. I was really taken aback by the cemeteries, and how beautiful and peaceful the place was. My father, who was a great admirer of Ataturk, said, ‘Son, this is where Turkey was born’.” But the real genesis of his interest in Gallipoli was born in and grew in Australia as he learnt about the Australian and Anzac perspective. “What started as an interest became a hobby, and then a passion....so much still to learn, so much to tell, so much to absorb.” He soon realised that the Australian public in general did not know much about the Turkish side, so he started writing and talking about that. He pushed the argument that the Anzacs and the Turks had no issue with each other, but were pawns of major European powers. And he pointed out that the Turkish losses were 40
times those of New Zealand and 10 times those of Australia (although there were also French and British forces). The upshot was a book, A Turkish View of Gallipoli, published in 1985 and very successful. “It sold many copies, but more than that, the media and general public were very eager to hear about the Turkish side. In those days, nobody talked about the Turkish side, we were the vanguard if you like. That interest told us something?’ Australian interest in the Turkish story stirred Turkish interest. “Why are there so many Australians and New Zealanders coming from the other end of the earth to pay their respects, but yet, “Here we are, we’re not paying respects to our fallen’?” asked the Turks. The Turks’ explored the question and grafted their own commemoration of Gallipoli onto what the Anzacs were doing. This evolution has resulted in today’s annual tripartite event.
Remembering – Anzac D ay 2013 21
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
r of the Hotel Limani in an side of the Dardenelles rspective. Yalman, who 05 as part of a Turkish tes farming as the area’s
ables to Istanbul, which million just four and half he university. Canakkale nt residents, and around oming in every year. y is the biggie for this area. a significant contributor. ve to offer ...a reason for n to stay another day or Day, but go year round.” s that show the economic 0 Australian visitors to Z80-100 million. Throw in ntribution of New Zealand will obviously be higher. tourist industry, which ar, Gallipoli is not huge. al significance, Gallipoli has a lot going for it. It’s relaxing, hills and water nably equitable climate, helpful people, attractive and the smaller Eceabat) rry ride. hat different from many the debate over allowing
re are worries that mining ns, damage the hills and ter.” Sound familiar?
centenary cruise offers ‘best of both worlds’
Thinking of Gallipoli ‘15? Don’t forget the physical demands
Taking your chances on scoring a pass in the ballot and getting yourself to the Anzac Day centenary commemorations at Gallipoli in 2015 may sound like a bit of a hassle. There’s one way, however, that you can make the process a real cruise. A consortium of tour companies has come up with the Gallipoli Epic Cruise option. You can be in the Gallipoli area for the lead-up to Anzac Day, visit the sites, be part of the dawn service on Anzac Day – and do it all in comfort on board ship without excessive physical strain. The New Zealand partner in the cruise is Innovative Travel Ltd, which has specialised for 23 years in “ancient kingdoms” holidays and travel to the Middle East/North Africa/ Mediterranean region. The company organised visits to the 90th and 95th commemorations at Gallipoli. The group is organising a nine-day Gallipoli 2015 cruise (Istanbul to Istanbul from April 18-26). Three years in the making, the cruise is the only Anzac centenary travel experience to be endorsed by the Australian Geographic Society, which has become an official expedition partner. The journey will re-enact the Anzac troops’ voyage from the Greek island of Lemnos to Anzac Cove, explore the key Gallipoli sites, and culminate with the on-board dawn service beamed in live as the ship sits two kilometres off Anzac Cove. Other services will be held on board during the day. New Zealand opera singer Dame Malvina Major has confirmed she will sing as part of the Anzac Day programme. Four Gallipoli specialists each with a distinct area of expertise, will be on board through the tour to help build and round out the Gallipoli story. They will cover perspectives such as military strategy, life in the front line for both Anzac and Turk, the abiding humanity that existed between the two foes, the Anzac diet, lost loves, humour, slang, the true origins of two-up, digger and cobber. Gallipoli historian John Basarin, who will be one of the on-board experts, says that if you’re in the age group who require a bit of peace, quiet and comfort, and don’t want to be exposed to the elements, the cruise could do you very nicely. “You can have all your comforts, you will be in the Dardenelles or off Anzac Cove, you will get a great view of
The official count at this year’s dawn service on Gallipoli was 5300. They’re expecting 10,500 for the centenary commemoration in 2015 – 8000 Australians, 2000 New Zealanders and 500 officials. At 5300, it was comfortable. Plenty of spare seats and space to stretch, plenty of room to move in or out through the rows, no long queues for food, toilets. No hassle. At 10,500 – virtually double this year’s numbers – it will be “tight as”. No spare seats, no space to stretch, no room to move in and out, almost certainly lengthy queues. Plenty of hassle. And that’s once you’ve got to Anzac Cove. To get there, you go by bus, then walk the last stretch. They say it’s seven kilometres; it’s more like four and it’s easy going along a shingle road. But for anyone with a disability, not in the best of nick, or not used to or up to such physical activity, it’s a hurdle. Then, if you’re a Kiwi and keen to go to the New Zealand service, you have to get yourself from sea level at Anzac Cove to Chunuk Bair, the command post on the highest point of the Gallipoli Peninsula. There will be only way. Up, by track and then sealed road. You won’t be able to go by bus. It’s a steady climb...fine if you’re fit and able, but a challenging “fair old haul” for those who aren’t. And you’ll be up for a long, long wait for the buses to get you away from Chunuk Bair after the service. This year, they were talking up to three hours. Double the numbers in 2015...take a guess at how long. None of this means less physically abled people should not go to Gallipoli in 2015. What it does mean, however, is that they need to appreciate there are a few caveats involved and need to be sure they choose a manageable option.
the official dawn service as proceedings are beamed to the ship and shown on a large screen, and you can also have your own ceremony (three options) on board. You can have best of both worlds.” He says he has come across one or two people who say they don’t want to come to Gallipoli in 2015 because it’ll be too much of an effort and too much hassle. “But the centenary won’t come round more than once, it’ll be something to be able to tell your grandchildren you were there on Anzac Day 2015. It’s a seminal moment, like a birthday. We celebrate our birthdays – if I manage to have a 100th birthday, I’ll be very happy to be partying.” The other on-board specialists will be: • Kevin Fewster, in his sixth year as director of the Royal Museums, Greenwich, in the United Kingdom. Previously director of three museums in Australia where he taught histiory at tertiary level. • Jim Molan, who retired from 40 years in the Australian Army in July 2008 with the rank of major general. Broad range of roles in operations, training, staff and military diplomacy. Served in South-East Asia and the Coalition’s chief of operations in Iraq in 2004. His 2008 book, Running The War in Iraq, is in its third print and has been released as an e-book. • Carol Scott, a planner, builder and measurer of museums, with specialist expertise in the ancient city of Troy. She has worked with Te Papa (Wellington) and museums in Australia, England, Finland and Sweden. The tour also includes: a day devoted to the Turkish story; visit to the resting place of Australia’s first submarine (AE2), which sank and lay undiscovered for more than 80 years; visits to the Military Museum in Canakkale and the ancient site of Troy;time on Lemnos; two days in Istanbul. • Cruise details/information: Innovative Travel Co Ltd: P.O.Box 21247, Christchurch 8013; Ph 03 3653910; toll-free 0508 100111; fax 03 3655755; toll free 0508 700700; email info@innovativetravel.co.nz; website www.innovativetravel.co.nz.
Siblings follow in Grandad’s steps Peter Eggleton (Christchurch) wearing his grandfather’s medals, and his sister, Ruth Spittle (Napier), at the New Zealand memorial at Chunuk Bair, Gallipoli on Anzac Day 2013. Tom McDougall fought at Gallipoli.; his medals include a Queen’s Service Medal and a 1914-15 War Medal. After finding the medals relatively recently, Peter decided to make the trip to Gallipoli. Ruth, a teacher, was able to come because Anzac Day this year fell within the school holidays. Peter Eggleton was highly enthusiastic about his Gallipoli experience, especially the pre-dawn service Maori welcome and singing....“mind-blowing,
left prickles on you”. He has high praise for the organisers – “There was more organisation than I expected, and it was very well done.” He enjoyed the New Zealand service too, although he found it a bit repetitive. But he rated New Zealand defence minister Jonathan Coleman as the outstanding speaker of the day. And, like nearly all Kiwis in Turkey, he raves about the warmth of the reception he got. He brings an interesting twist with this observation: “It’s even more impressive when you realise that New Zealand was the aggressor in this conflict.”
then a passion....so much still to learn, to tell, to absorb’ Meanwhile Basarin produced five more books on Gallipoli, and continued to present the Turkish story regularly in print articles and radio/television programmes. His long-time contribution was recognised in 2005 through a Victorian Premier’s Award for Excellence in Multicultural Affairs. One of his books dealt with Australia’s first submarine. AE2. The morning the Anzacs landed at Gallipoli, the AE2 became the first Allied vessel to penetrate the Dardenelles. Five days later it was holed by Turkish fire and was scuttled by its crew. A Turkish torpedo boat saved all of the crew, but the subs lay undiscovered, 70 metres down, for more than 80 years. For a decade Basarin was involved with the AE2-Australian submarine project. He was the Turkish adviser to the 25-strong team that went to Turkey in 2007 and surveyed the submarine, and his AE2 plaque project has been implemented in Sydney, Fremantle and Gallipoli.
celebrated his “sustained and enthusiastic commitment to promote relationships between Australia and other communities around the world, particularly Turkey, with a significant emphasis on his commitment to Rotary Youth Exchange programmes and building understanding of the Gallipoli Campaign”. The following year he completed his doctoral thesis, Battlefield Tourism – Anzac Day Commemorations at Gallipoli – which involved interviewing 1000 Australian going to and from Gallipoli. Since he retired, he has been a regular leader
John Basarin’s first visit to Gallipoli was in 1956 – as a 10-year-old, with his father. “In those days, there was hardly anything on the peninsula; we saw a shepherd and some sheep, but that was basically it. I was really taken aback by the cemeteries, and how beautiful and peaceful the place was. My father, who was a great admirer of Ataturk, said, ‘Son, this is where Turkey was born’.”
A further award followed in 2010 – the Anzac Peace Prize from the Australian Returned Services League Anzac awards committee. It
of tours to Turkey and Gallipoli, and is project manager of Gallipoli 2015 and its Anzac travel programme. He has formed Friends of Gallipoli with the aim of developing friendship and interaction between young people around the world, with particular emphasis on Gallipoli. John Basarin remains a strong believer in the power of knowledge and understanding in bringing countries together. He goes back to the story of the first Australian captured by the Turks at Gallipoli: “He was taken to the Turkish commander who asked, not how many cannons or how many machine guns do you have, but where is Australia. He had never heard of it. And I guess the same would apply with a New Zealander.” The Turks knew nothing of New Zealanders and Australians; equally, the Anzacs knew nothing about Turks. That commander’s question, Basarin believes, reflects the true origin of the Anzac/Turkish relationship we now enjoy.
22 News
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
CADETS – 150 years and still growing Maj Wayne Henderson New Zealand Cadet Force s
New Zealand Cadet Forces (NZCF) remains a growing concern as it approaches its 150th anniversary in 2014. The organisation’s latest recruit – the Timaru unit – was officially established as a cadet corps unit, under the command of Lt Amos Sutcliffe, from April 15, 2013. Many of New Zealand 3000-plus cadets are expected to gather in Waiouru next January for a major NZCF 150th anniversary camp. It’s a modern organisation. Training includes foot drill, rifle drill, marching, general service knowledge), radio procedure, firearms training, marksmanship, physical training and first-aid. Adventure-based training includes bushcraft, weather reading, survival training, instructional technique, leadership and citizenship training. There are also corps-specific topics, such as aviation studies for the Air Training Corps (ATC) and seamanship for the Sea Cadet Corps (SCC). Many training topics can be credited towards NZQA. Cadets are not members of the New Zealand Defence Force, but do enjoy NZDF support for activities such as NZCF promotional and instructional courses, and the junior and senior NCO cadet courses, where young people are taught leadership and self-responsibility skills. Cadet units endeavour to work closely with
their RSAs. Virtually all cadets attend at least one event on Anzac Day, and assist with tasks such as providing wreath-layers, flag duties and cenotaph guards. They also form up for the various parades and sell poppies. The RNZRSA Trophy, which is awarded annually to a cadet unit for community service, comes
Cadets began in New Zealand in 1864 with the Dunedin (now Otago Boys’) High School Cadet Unit. This was not long after the beginnings of the movement in the United Kingdom about 1860 and before Australia (1866). In New Zealand, cadets moved from the volunteer period (1864-1902) to public-school cadets under the Education Department (19021910), junior cadets (1910-12) and senior cadets (1911-21). From March 1, 1911, military training was compulsory for males, aged 14 to 21. From about 1922 to 1939, cadet companies were part of the Territorial Force. Virtually every young male between 13 and 18 experienced school cadets. Most boys’ schools held a barracks week, and practised drill during term. Battledress – often referred to unflatteringly as “the sand paper suit” – was an issue.
The Sea Cadet Corps (SCC) was formed in New Zealand in 1929 with the training ship, Steadfast, based in Christchurch. Sea cadets operated as open units, but later some school cadet corps units had sea cadet sections. The Air Training Corps (ATC) began in NZ in 1941 – No 1 and No 2 squadrons ATC formed on September 15, then No 3, No 4 and No 5 squadrons on September 29. Other ATC squadrons followed. The Army Act of 1950 placed cadet corps under the New Zealand Army. They also became known more popularly as school cadets, the name by which some people still refer to them. In 1950 the ATC was officially made part of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, largely because of its recruiting impact on the RNZAF. By 1962 New Zealand had about 55,000 cadets and officers, and was bigger than the New Zealand
The original 1864 cadet unit at Dunedin (now Otago Boys’) Higb School in Dunedin. Photo reproduced with permission of Otago Settlers Museum.
with a substantial sum of money. The Opotiki College Cadet Unit won the trophy in 2012. Cadets can join from the age of 13 or by attending high school; they can remain in Cadets until they are 18. Some become NZCF officers, and help run a unit. There is no requirement to join the services, although a good number do.
Prospective cadets are encouraged to approach their local unit directly. Most units require cadets levy a sub, which goes towards day-to-day costs. All officers and cadets are volunteers, and are unpaid for their activities at unit level. Information: www.cadetforces.mil.nz; Facebook (search Cadet150).
COMMUNITY-DEFENCE SUPPORT STRUCTURE ‘A KEY ELEMENT’
The most valuable skills I have gained in the NZCF have been self-confidence and leadership. These attributes have helped me in all aspects of my life. – Plt Off Courtenay Nimmo, 18 (Avon) Sqn ATC
I came to cadets with so little, thinking I had a lot. It has provided me with the opportunity and the ability to develop myself as a person. – Cdt CSM Caleb Duffy, City of Chch Cadet Unit Left, upper: The TS Amokura champion team at this year’s sea cadets central area regatta in Wellington. Left, lower. An underofficer course at the New Zealand Police College, Porirua. Right: Dunedin area cadets practise their mortar skills in the 1940s.
Defence Force of the day. The Government decided to disband cadets on the basis it was too large to support and costly to maintain. However, the community and organisations lobbied government to retain cadets. The RNZRSA was crucial to this success. The New Zealand Cadet Forces, created by the Defence Act 1971,has developed a mission statement: “To develop confident, responsible young citizens who are valued within their community by providing them, within a military framework, safe, enjoyable and challenging opportunities”. A key element has been the community/ Defence partnership to support cadet units. All units have a parent support committee which, in turn, is supported by the Cadet Corps Association of New Zealand, the ATC and SCC. In the 1980s, NZCF integrated female cadets into its ranks, and open cadet corps units were being formed. Most of the traditional school cadet units were winding up.
The City of Christchurch Cadet Unit takes part in the 2013 Anzac Day commemorations at New Brighton.
Cadets has enabled to develop personal organisational skills and moral standards as well as given me many life skills. There is keen camaraderie and I have gained life-long friends. – Ldg Cdt James Keleghan, TS Steadfast
Health & Well-Being
msNZ tackles FATIGUE FACTOR Multiple Sclerosis Canterbury’s new fatiguemanagement programme – the first of its kind in New Zealand – will bring relief to the 3000 New Zealanders who live with this debilitating condition, says Multiple Sclerosis New Zealand’s programme creator, physiotherapist Jessie Snowdon. “Up to 90% of people living with multiple sclerosis experience fatigue,” she says. “MS-related fatigue is not just tiredness. It can stop you dead in your tracks and can intensify other MS symptoms, making walking, vision and even thinking difficult.” Neurologist Deborah Mason agrees. “MS has a huge impact with a potential loss of up to 40% of a persons lifetime earnings,” she says . “The majority attribute this to fatigue, lack of mobility or concentration difficulties.” Mason discussed disability and the socioeconomic effects of MS in New Zealand at the launch of the Minimise Fatigue, Maximise Life programme. She says the new fatigue-management programme seeks to empower people by giving them the tools to manage their condition and symptoms. The new programme won an award at the Physio100 scientific conference in Dunedin as the
MS-induced fatigue has a hugh impact on people’s lives, say physiotherapist Jessie Snowdon (far left) and neurologist Deborah Mason (left).
“presentation with the most significant clinical relevance”. The award recognises the benefits the programme and its research have already had on the lives of people with MS. Jessie Snowdon presented a synopsis of the six-week programme, which has been developed in conjunction with Hilda Mulligan, from the University of Otago. Snowdon says the programme has far-reaching implications for working people living with MS
MS-related fatigue is not just tiredness. It can stop you dead in your tracks.
and other neurological conditions that experience fatigue. She believes further research is needed into the effect of fatigue on employment. A recent study found that almost 70% of people with MS who had left employment had done so because of fatigue. An estimated two million people around the world are affected by MS. The average age of diagnosis with MS is 35, and women are three times more likely to be diagnosed. So, families are often hugely affected by MS-related fatigue. Health professionals are being trained in Christchurch to run the programme, and it is planned to make it available to the rest of New Zealand this year.
‘I had a lot of doubts as to the future’ Lew Airey, 70 (pictured in the gym, right), diagnosed with MS in 1998, was part of the research group for the development of the Minimise Fatigue. Maximise Life programme. “The first year of MS was one of confusion. I was fortunate to have an employer who sat down with me and became familiar with my MS and the direction it may go. My lifestyle had to be reassessed to take in the realities and limitations of MS, especially when fatigue dictates the energy you have to expend. “The course gave me a better understanding of the cause and effect of the symptoms, and made me appreciate what other members of the group have experienced. I now have a better appreciation of fatigue and have learnt how to manage my day to minimise it. “I had a lot of doubts as to what the future held for me. I knew MS and fatigue were going to affect my management capacity, so I had to be open to all people I engaged with. It was important that all my colleagues knew the limitations I had now and into the future. Staff knew that I could be late in the morning or leave early at night. It’s critical to take your employer into your confidence as early as possible; it could save embarrassing situations.”
24 Health/Well-Being
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
‘incredible’ contributor recognised Trina Lyon’s selfless dedication to volunteer work has seen her selected as the Esme Tombleson Person of the Year by the Multiple Sclerosis Society of New Zealand. “I knew MS Otago had nominated me for the award, but it was still quite a shock when the society rang to tell me I’d won,” she says. “They flew me to Wellington for lunch and made the presentation at their AGM. It was fantastic.” The award recognises people with multiple sclerosis who demonstrate an exceptional and outstanding example to the MS community. It also honours MSNZ founder Esme Tombleson, and the many years of work and commitment she gave people with the disease. Trina, diagnosed with MS in 2011 at the age of 44, had to give up work this year as a trainee lab technician because of fatigue related to MS. Since then she has contributed an “incredible amount” to MS Otago as well as other Dunedinbased charities and the medical fraternity. “I’m still quite mobile, so do what I can to help. I think of myself as a professional volunteer who pays it forward. Volunteer work helps fill in my days and I get to meet lots of neat people.” She is the first to put her hand up to assist with MS Otago fundraisers and appeals, and regularly attends the MS Support group lunches
Left: Trina Lyon (right) and friend on a MS Otago fundraiser. Right: Her beloved friend, Bruno...‘a true bitsa’.
and physiotherapy clinic. She has collected for Dog Rescue Dunedin, Alzheimers, Hospice, and Safe appeals this year. As a “friend” of the Otago Medical School, she allows new medical students into her home to discuss community health needs, and offers her services as a real-life case study for fourth-year students studying neurology. “The students are told I’m a 46-year-old woman presenting with a leg weakness. They then use their training to diagnose what’s wrong with me.” She assists the School of Physiotherapy in a similar way. “I attend MS clinics at the school
where third-year students offer treatment and exercise programmes for MS patients. I try to do everything I can to help. Who knows? These people may be the ones to find a cure for MS or something to help.” Her beloved dog, Bruno, a “true bitsa” weighing 55kg, is a massive part of her life and almost as well known in Dunedin as she is. “Bruno has made it his job in life to look after me. He comes fundraising with me and, if I’m having a bad hair day, he sleeps on my feet.” At a Neurological Foundation awareness day, she and Bruno met an Otago man recently
diagnosed with MS, who had come to Dunedin to learn more about the disease. “Bruno lay on his feet and stayed there for 15 to 20 minutes as if to say, ‘It’s all right, I’m here’.” Bruno also visits retirement homes with Trina and is great with Alzheimers patients, she says. “He doesn’t mind if they stand on his tail.” Before her illness Trina fostered 13 dogs for Dog Rescue and, although she is no longer a regular ‘foster mum’, has taken back one of these dogs (JDog) permanently. She says her initial reaction was shock when she discovered she had MS after experiencing fatigue, balance issues and muscle weakening, but says MS Otago has always offered her fantastic support. “When I first contacted them, they said I didn’t have to come in straight away – that some people need time to get their head around the diagnosis. But I believed that like cancer, a positive attitude has a lot to do with how you cope. I already knew I had the disease and it wasn’t going to go away, so why not get to know how people live with it.” In typical upbeat fashion, she refuses to be negative about her health: “I had no idea what MS was when I was diagnosed, so to help get the word out there and do something to help neurology and physiotherapy students to understand the disease better is really rewarding.”
Multiple Sclerosis New Zealand is funding an incidence study to determine the national incidence of MS. The study seeks to identify all people diagnosed with the condition between June 1, 2012 and May 31. 2014. Patients are assessed at entry into the programme, and at six, 12 and 24 months. The data will be used to help ascertain the impact of MS in New Zealand, and to predict treatment costs and facilitate allocation of
resources. This is the first population-based study of early MS anywhere, and will be used internationally to inform evidence-based recommendations for health care. Information: Dr Alla – 0800 MS Study; msstudy@nzbri.org. A 2006 prevalence study funded by MSNZ and the New Zealand Health Research Council showed that MS had a significant influence on the workforce status of New Zealanders aged
between 25 and 64. Nearly 55% of those with MS were not working, despite 90% having a work history. At least 67% had changed their work status because of MS, most within the first four years of diagnosis. The effect was greater for females. The median annual personal income of workers with MS was $20,000, compared with $34,750 for the general population. MS is estimated to affect one person in 1000
in New Zealand. Symptoms usually appear between 20 and 50, with a peak in the late 30s. Women are three times more likely than men to have MS. It is not contagious or infectious. MS becomes more common the further away from the equator you are. It is more prevalent in Caucasians than any other ethnic group. It is rarely found in Maori and Polynesians and is uncommon in Asians.
Jo Bailey
New Zealand incidence project the world’s first population-based study of early MS
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26 Health & Well-Being
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
LET’S HAVE YOUR THOUGHTS ON TREATMENT FROM ACC Margaret Snow, RNZRSA manager advocacy and support services How has the Accident Compensation Commission treated you? Do you have stories about how ACC-related services have worked or not worked for you? I belong to the Older Persons’ Advisory Group to ACC, and group members are asking people for information that will help ACC provide a better service. As readers of the RSA Review, you are members of my network and I value your input. If you have used any ACC service in the last 12 months or need to, and have any comments, compliments or complaints, I would like to hear from you. From what I have learned at the group’s meetings, many people don’t report injuries to ACC. This could be the cost of going to a doctor, because the wait is too long at the hospital emergency department, because the injured person doesn’t believe the injury is bad enough to take to ACC, the person’s family or whanau will take care of them, or they are in a rest home
and staff treat the injury and forget to report it. There are also people, mostly recent immigrants, who are not aware of ACC. The risk of not reporting an injury is that if it comes back to cause you problems, it may not be covered by ACC and you risk not getting treatment. If you have reported your injury to a health professional, such as your GP, a physiotherapist or the hospital, a form needs to be completed with your information and the nature of the injury. If you are not in a position to provide all the details required, a member of your family or a friend can do so. The form goes to ACC, often electronically, and, within a few days, you will receive a letter telling you if ACC has accepted your claim. Depending on the severity of your injury you may, as I was last October, be entitled to free dressings for cuts and grazes. This includes people in rest-homes who sometimes find themselves
with a bill for these items. However, rest-home residents needing dressings when skin has broken from ulceration because of a health concern not related to an accident, will have to pay for dressings themselves. If your injury is much more severe and you needed hospital, especially in-patient, treatment, you may be entitled to home help or someone to help you with your personal care or even preparing meals for a time. This is arranged through the district health board, but paid for by ACC. Such a need should have been noted on your discharge plan from the hospital, and should kick in immediately. Occasionally people are not given a discharge plan when they leave hospital, and, also occasionally, especially if the discharge is at the end of the week, the meals or carer don’t arrive until the following week. This is potentially dangerous as patients could sustain a fall trying to take care of themselves.
For those not yet 65, he age at which New Zealand Superannuation becomes an entitlement, there is the possibility of entitlement to 80% of our wage in weekly compensation if an injury means we are not able to work for seven days or more. If you are nearing 65, this can become a little more complicated and you should talk to ACC about your circumstances. Please send me your comments, compliments and complaints about anything that has happened to you through ACC’s handling of your claim and the ACC-related services you received. I will be able to feed that information through to ACC. I’m interested to hear specifically how it happened and its impact on you. I would be grateful if comments could be about something that happened in the last 12 months, and is ongoing. Please include your age at the time of injury and where you live. I do not intend to give personal details of individuals to ACC.
Check your condition – maybe your war pension needs re-assessing A number of years ago the RNZRSA ran a campaign to remind veterans and those who served before April 1, 1974 (when accident compensation was introduced) to apply for war disablement pensions for health concerns and disabilities they considered a result of service in the New Zealand armed forces. A lot of people did so, but it took some time for many of the applications to be processed and decisions to be sent out. If you applied were granted a war pension a number of years ago, now may be the time to take stock and consider whether your condition has deteriorated. Talk with your GP or specialist, and decide whether you should ask for your accepted
disability to reassessed. However, note that noise-induced hearing loss – also known as sensori neural deafness – cannot be reassessed because once you are no longer exposed to a noise source, your hearing should not deteriorate further because of it. If you decide you would like a reassessment, contact Veterans’ Affairs New Zealand and ask for an application form, or download the form (VANZ 2) from the website (www.veteransaffairs. mil.nz), or ask your RSA support adviser to help you complete the form. Your application will go through the same process as when you first applied. Your VANZ case manager will ensure required medical
evidence is obtained (and send you to a specialist if necessary), and will pass your claim to the War Pensions Claims Panel. Once the panel has made a decision, you will have the same rights of review and appeal as when you first made a claim. There should not be any delays in the process, but it can take some time to obtain an appointment with a specialist. If you served in a recognised war or emergency, you are over 65, and you reach 70% war disablement pension, you will be entitled to change your NZ Superannuation for the Veteran’s Pension. This provides you with a few extra benefits, such as entitlement to a community services card (regardless of income and assets), and a
lump sum paid to your widow/er, partner or dependent children when you die. You can to test their entitlement to a surviving spouse pension. Many younger veterans – a lot of whom don’t consider they are veterans but have served in recognised peacekeeping operations or in Somalia, Afghanistan, Timor Leste or the Solomon Islands – are yet to claim for war disablement pensions. Many have post-traumatic-stress problems, or other adjustment and anxiety problems, but may not recognise them as such. If you know of anyone who should seek a war disablement pension, give them a hand. That’s what the RNZRSA was set up to do in 1916, and it continues to be at the core of our association.
George demonstrates ‘you can live a good life with copd’
George Anderson says he was 15 when he started smoking: “My uncle sent my dad home boxes of cigarettes from the war. I used to flog the odd one and smoke in the shed. That was the beginning of 44 years of heavy smoking, generally 30-35 cigarettes a day.” He gave up in 1994. His wife was away at the time, and George was amused that she was home for two or three days before she twigged that he wasn’t smoking. “She was pretty happy, but didn’t believe it. I had tried to knock off before, had tried to go cold turkey and it didn’t work – the Nicobrevin tablets was what I needed to stop.” He says he noticed some immediate benefits from not smoking. He enjoyed the taste of his food more and he didn’t wake up in the morning with a rotten taste in his mouth. “I always used to blame that on the beers, but when I gave up smoking, I realised it was the cigarettes.” In 2007 George started to notice shortness of breath. He went to his GP who told him he had emphysema, or COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). On his doctor’s advice, George went to COPD classes and joined the gym. Where possible, he has been going to the gym five days a week since. This has allowed him to take control of his COPD and have a good quality of life. “I honestly believe that if I hadn’t seen my GP, joined the gym and worked on my breathing exercises, I wouldn’t be here today,” he says. He also goes to a monthly COPD support group meeting; he says he’s one of the “old timers” at the classes now. Those with respiratory issues usually go twice a week for six weeks. The benefit of having taken control of his COPD was also apparent when George had a hip replacement,and then two separate operations
If I hadn’t seen my GP, joined the gym and worked on my breathing exercises, I wouldn’t be here today.
Left: George Anderson ...noticed immediate benefits from not smoking.
to take a cataract off each eye. “They would not have put me under anaesthetic if I hadn’t been exercising and keeping myself as healthy as possible.” COPD is the most common cause of long-term breathing difficulties in New Zealand, one of the leading causes of death, and a major impactor on quality of life. COPD, which includes conditions such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis, affects one in seven New Zealanders aged over 45 – that’s more than 200,000 people. If you are a smoker or ex-smoker, and have a persistent cough or get short of breath when you exert yourself, you may suffer from COPD. The Asthma Foundation is urging people with these symptoms to discuss them with a doctor.
More than 85% of people with COPD are smokers or ex-smokers, and smoking is by far the most important cause of the disease. Second-hand smoke can also lead to COPD. Once the lung damage has been done, COPD cannot be cured. However, stopping smoking
will slow its progression, and there are good inhaled medications available that can improve symptoms. Kyle Perrin, medical adviser for the Asthma Foundation, says you can live a good life with COPD. “Early detection and quitting smoking can make a big difference; being smoke-free would prevent most cases of COPD. Quitting smoking is a real challenge for people addicted to tobacco. Sometimes just going cold turkey works, but most people need some kind of support. Calling the Quitline is a good start, and GPs can assist with nicotine replacement and medication to reduce cravings.” The Asthma Foundation’s affiliated asthma societies and trusts around New Zealand can also support you and provide you with information to help make your life easier. There’s also information on the Asthma Foundation website (www.asthmafoundation.org.nz) – click on Your Health. Or you can fill in the coupon below.
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28
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
RSA Life YOUNG POETS WHISTLE UP VERSE FOR BOSUN’S PIPE Last year it was a poster, this year a poem, as the Te Awamutu RSA continued its efforts to become more involved in the community. After running an Anzac-themed poster competition for local primary and intermediate schools last year, the club stuck to the format, but changed the content to an Anzac-themed poem this year. The competition was extended to two sections, junior (years 5 and 6) and senior (years 7 and 8). There was even continuity with the trophies. Last year a Royal New Zealand Navy visitor hosted at the club presented a bosun’s pipe – a traditional naval whistle used to precede orders on ship – from HMNZS Te Kaha; this was framed and presented to the winner’s school. This year an ex-HMNZS Royalist “matelot”, George Richmond, presented another bosun’s pipe, which meant there was a pipe for each section. The 2013 senior section was won by Callum
Ghersi, from Ohaupo School, and the junior section by Kacey Miezenbeeck, from Te Awamutu Primary School. When Callum Ghersi was presented with his prize at a school assembly in mid-June, the occasion was recorded by Central TV, a regional station based in Matamata. A group from the RSA went along for the presentation at Te Awamutu Primary. Heavy rain prevented a formal assembly and the presentation was made over the school’s radio station, which broadcasts to every classroom and over a 10-kilometre radius. Past president Terry Findlay introduced the group and gave the details about the competition. Club member and ex-Royal Marine bugler Ron Powell demonstrated the bosun’s pipe, related something of its history and use, and recounted how he was injured in a kamikaze attack on HMS Indefatigable at Okinawa. Kacey Miezenbeeck read her winning poem.
The Te Awamutu Primary School poetry winners share their success with the Te Awamutu RSA prizegiving party and representatives from staff from the school. Photo: Irene Wardlaw.
Crete association grows new branch
Sqn Ldr (rtd) Phillip Stewart NZ404962 (pictured with Brendan Deere (left) and his Mk9 Spitfire) was among the veterans (24 on the Saturday and 19 on the Sunday) hosted by the Marlborough RSA at the biennial Classic Fighters Omaka air show over Easter. Now aged 96, Phillip Stewart served with the RNZAF in Europe from just after the Battle of Britain until just after D-Day – with 91Sqn based in Hawking, 129Sqn in Trangmere, 616Sqn in south Yorkshire, and 1Sqn in Predannack, Cornwall. By registering their interest with the Marlborough RSA, the veterans received free admission to the show, door-to-door daily transport to and from the venue, plus cake, fruit and tea, coffee and fruit juice. The RSA hosted 24 veterans on the Saturday and 19 on the Sunday. John Forrest, senior human resources adviser at the RNZAF Base, Woodbourne, says the RSA will be participating in future airshows at Omaka and will continue to host veterans.
A Christchurch-based Southern sub-branch was formalised at the New Zealand Battle of Crete Association’s annual meeting in Tauranga. This followed a meeting of 12 interested people in April The arrangement has arisen out of the work Ivan and Lynne McMillan have been doing in Christchurch many years. They it will remain an informal, friendly group with the main aim of keeping alive the memory of the Battle of Crete, honouring remaining veterans, wives and widows, and remembering those who fought and those who have died. Crete and its people will also be very much in our focus. The new group will not be asking for subscriptions to join the association, but will welcome donations to support veterans, wives and widows. The new group commemorated the anniversary of the Battle of Crete on May 19 with a visit to the Ashburton Aviation Museum, a 30-minute DC3 scenic flight over Mid-Canterbury, and half-hour film on Crete. Australian parachutists jumped from this DC3 aircraft to fight the Japanese in the Philippines during World War 2.
On the same day a commemoration memorial service was at the Mount Maunganui, RNZRSA chief executive Stephen Clarke as the keynote speaker The association decided at its annual to establish the position of patron. Air Mshl (rtd) Sir Bruce Ferguson has accepted an invitation to take on this role. He is a former chief of the New Zealand Defence Force. And director of Government Communications Security Bureau. After completing his pilot training in the early 1970s, he was flying instructor/commander of Search and Rescue for about 10 years. He was commanding officer of the Central Flying School from 1982-84, NZDF assistant chief in 1997 and chief four years later. He and his wife stay in Mount Maunganui quite often and he hopes to attend the Battle of Crete Association’s Christmas luncheon in November. Other officers elected were: President, Deirdre Hauschild; vice-president, Paul London; secretary/treasurer, Colin Henderson; accountant, Darren Mills; committee, Stewart Gradon, Robin Lloyd, Lynne McMillan, Robyn Molloy, Jeannie Overall.
The RSA lapel badge that captured the attention of Takapau & District RSA president Andy Kells.
Family found, but the mystery remains The Canterbury Medical Research Foundation has been funding research here for over 50 years... and to date has funded more than $17 million dollars in research grants.
Canterbury Medical Research Foundation Level 1, 230 Antigua Street, Christchurch. Phone (03) 353 1240 Email: health@cmrf.org.nz www.cmrf.org.nz CC No. CC11203
A lapel badge inscribed with “Returned Soldiers Association” – as the organisation was known when established in 1922 – unearthed during refurbishment at the Takapau and District RSA is being returned to the family. Takapau president Andy Kells was struck by the army number on the badge and set out to track down more details. “ I just wanted to return it to rightful recipient’s descendants,” said Andy. An email to the National Archives drew a reply which revealed a colourful service record. The recipient of the badge was Henry Greenshields Beange, who arrived in Takapau with his wife, Agnes, from Wyndham, Southland some time in 1906-07. He worked for E.R.White, of Ashley Clinton.
His record service shows that he had served in the South African war, and received the Queen’s Medal with Rhodesia, Transvaal, Orange Free State and South Africa clasps. He enlisted for World War 1 at Trentham in 1915 and completed three years and 141 days overseas in Egypt and the Western Front, earning the 1914-15 Star, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal. The story goes that Henry Beange was presented with a watch by the Sherwood community in recognition of his service to New Zealand and to farming. Henry and Agnes had no children, but Andy Kells has made contact with and is sending the badge to a great nephew. How the lapel badge ended up in the Takapau RSA remains a mystery.
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BREW-UP FROM campfire chat Peter Owens An idea conceived by old army mates on a hunting trip five years ago has led to the national distrubution of a special “services port”. It began with a half a dozen East Timor and Afghanistan veterans in Southland’s Waikaia hills in 2008. The idea of creating a port specially for ex-servicemen came up around the campfire – as it does. “We thought we needed a port dedicated not only to infantrymen, but to all service personnel who have served with the armed forces,” says Aaron Horrell, from Riversdale, in Northern Southland. He and Liam Oxford, of Christchurch, organised annual, high-country hunting trips for their ex-army comrades. But, unlike most ideas that get tossed around in such circumstances, this one did not go up with the smoke. Says Horrell: “We wanted to make something
Chris Turver (left) receives his RNZRSA “returned“ badge from Otaki RSA president Colin Robertson.
War correspondent granted returned membership
Former Vietnam war correspondent Chris Turver is one of the first civilians to be granted “returned” membership of the RNZRSA following a decision by the National Council late last year. The presentation was made by Otaki RSA president Colin Robertson at its annual meeting in May. Members at the meeting had unanimously backed a rule change recognising the part played by civilians in supporting New Zealand military personnel in hazardous areas. Turver was attached to 161 Battery at Bien Hoa between July and September 1965; he took part in various operations, including Ben Cat, before being switched by the NZPA to cover the last rotation of 1 RNZIR on the Borneo border. Prime minister Helen Clark presented him with the New Zealand General Service Medal with Warlike Clasp Vietnam at Parliament and he was later awarded the New Zealand Operational Service Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, and the New Zealand Special Service Medal (Nuclear Testing) for his reporting from the frigate HMNZS Canterbury during its protest voyage against French nuclear testing in 1973. The Ex-Vietnam Services Association, of which Turver has been a member almost since its inception, invited him to be the only civilian to carry an honour flag in Parade 08 to Parliament for one of the 37 New Zealanders killed in Vietnam. The flag bore the name of Sgt Al Don, killed with Bdr Jock White when Landrover Romeo 2 was destroyed in a landmine explosion en route to Ben Cat in September 1965. Turver, who was wounded, and L/Bdr Ron Edwards, who escaped unscathed, were sitting on armed 105mm howitzer shells packed in the Aden configuration in the back tray. Chris Turver is a full member of the Returned Services League and was previously a “service“ member of the RNZRSA. He also belongs to the Mururoa Veterans’ Society, and was this year elected an honorary member of the Royal New Zealand Artillery Association.
we could drink to pay homage to our fallen, something you can raise as a toast at military events.” The result: Grunts Grog port was officially released on the market at the start of this year. It sold well in Southland through the Invercargill and Mataura licensing trusts’ outlets. The Gore RSA was the first commercial outlet to sell it. Then, Christchurch-based Harrington’s Breweries liked what they tasted, and took the pair and port on. Harrington’s now produces and supplies Grunts Grog around New Zealand. It is available from most RSAs. It was adopted by numerous South Island Duck Hunters’ Association branches as an official tipple this season. However, Horrell and Oxford wanted to do more. Grunts Grog now supports the New Zealand Fallen Heroes’ Trust (an organisation that assists the families of soldiers killed in service) and the RNZRSA. A quarter of the profits from
Grunts Grog sales is divided between these two organisations. Horrell and Oxford – who have a combined 23 years of service in 2/1 Battalion RNZIR and operational tours that include East Timor Bn 2 and 6, Afghanistan Crib 4, 20 and East Timor Bn. 2 and 5, and Afghanistan Crib 1 – have seen the loss of comrades while on operations. Aaron Horrell has an especially close connection with the Fallen Heroes’ Trust – he has lost six comrades on active service, five in Afghanistan in the last year. Both are still active members of the newly formed Territorial Force 2/4 Battalion RNZIR. Their Anzac Day commemoration with mates this year included a toast to fallen service personnel with a bottle of Grunts Grog. .Drinking port was one of the many British traditions adopted when the New Zealand Army was formed in the 19th century. It remains part of NZ Army culture.
Aaron Horrell with a bottle of Grunt’s Grog.
‘Lost trail’ finds friends, closure, comfort A Lost Trails item in the May 2009 RSA Review started an extraordinary series of events. The item was initiated by Norman Tomlinson, who lives near Torrisholme Cemetery, in Morecombe, England. He often wandered through the cemetery and wondered why a New Zealand airman was buried there, about the family, and about the history of F/S Jack Wilson 425967, who died on August 23, 1944. Margaret Todd (nee Wilson) was reading the Review in Westport, New Zealand, and was astounded to come across the item about Jack – her brother. She is a RSA member, the wife of an ex-serviceman and Westport RSA past-president, the late Jack Todd. She immediately made contact with Norman Tomlinson, who passed the information about Jack Wilson on to his Royal British Legion’s Morecombe and Heysham branch, prompting an amazing international response from members. Since Anzac Day 2010, the legion has held an Anzac Day service at Jack Wilson’s graveside, and has discovered records about his plane crash, through mechanical failure, in Morecombe Bay. These records were found during renovations to a Morecombe hotel which had been a military hospital during World War 2. The records, which were in a book to commemorate the history of the building, included medical notes and details of Jack Wilson’s admittance and subsequent death from injuries sustained in the crash. The memorial service on Anzac Day 2011 was
Anzac Day at the graveside of New Zealand airman F/S Jack Wilson in the Torrishiolme Cemetery, in England.
conducted by Rev Richard Gill, and was attended by 50 people. A wreath of red poppies from the New Zealand Embassy, in London, was laid by legion members. The lord mayor of Leicester and several members of Parliament were present. Photos and letters continue to travel back and forth, and a number of people have written directly to Jack’s family to volunteer information and pass on their thanks and admiration for the efforts of New Zealand servicemen and women during World War 2. Norman Tomlinson
has become the “official carer” of Jack’s grave. Margaret Todd says these new friendships and comradeships span continents and offer a degree of comfort and closure after 65 years of silence, worry and doubt about a loved one’s resting place. She says the comfort given to Jack’s family in New Zealand through the efforts and dedication the Morecome and Heysham Royal British Legion members provides an outstanding example of the RNZRSA proclamation, ‘We will remember them’.
Student artists started with a blank wall Ann-Marie Emerson, Wanganui Chronicle
A mural depicting New Zealand’s military history resulted from a chance meeting between the vice-president of the Wanganui RSA and two fine arts students. Ted Morris came up with the idea of a mural to fill in a blank wall on the side of the Wanganui RSA building after seeing a similar work in Te Horo on the Kapiti Coast. Wanganui RSA president Dan McLeod backed the plan and Morris headed to the UCol Whanganui campus to find an artist. He bumped into second-year students Cally McKenzie and James Graves who were taking down an exhibition – and the job was theirs. After much planning, researching and discussion with RSA committee members, the pair began painting the mural in February, fitting it in between classes. They finished a few days before Anzac Day. The mural commemorates all New Zealand servicemen and women, and contains elements from all major international conflicts in which New Zealand armed forces have been involved. The two artists were made honorary members of the RSA when the mural was officially unveiled in May. The unveiling was also used to pass on
Artists James Graves (left) and Cally McKenzie (centre) join Wanganui RSA vice-president Ted Morris at the club’s new RSA mural. Photo: Bevan Conley, Wanganui Chronicle
$1040 raised by RSA members for the Wanganui Cancer Society. Postcards made of the mural are being sold at the club and around Wanganui. James Graves says the work was a “big
commitment” for the two of them. It is also great exposure for them, and he says they have been asked to do a mural on the side of the Kai Iwi School.
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What’s On MONTHLY/TWO-MONTHLY CMT ASSOCIATION, SOUTH AUCKLAND BRANCH Meeting, second Saturday of month, Papakura RSA. Ex-CMT and National Servicemen welcome to join. Contact: John Bennetts – jandsbennetts@xtra.co.nz; 09 2986847. ITALY STAR ASSOCIATION (CHRISTCHURCH BRANCH) Meetings 20 Apr, 22 Jun, 10 Aug, 19 Oct, 23 Nov (luncheon) 1.30pm, Cashmere Club, 88 Hunter Tce, Christchurch. All welcome. Contact: Peter Scott, chairman – 27 Kenwyn Ave, St.Albans, Christchurch 8052; 03 3556732; peter.judy@ actrix.co.nz. NEW ZEALAND BRANCH, ROYAL MARINES ASSOCIATION Meetings, 13 Apr, 8 Jun,10 Aug, 12 Oct, 14 Dec, 2pm, Pt Chevalier RSA, Auckland. Full membership to serving or former RM, RMR and RN, HM Forces RM units, family members, Royal Marines Cadets. Contact: Peter Collins – 634 PapakuraClevedon Road, Ardmore RD2, Papakura 2582; 09 2967648; 0211 417119. peter-collins@xtra. co.nz; http://www.royalmarinesassociation. org/nz/rma_nz_home.html
july MURUROA VETERANS 40TH REUNION 20 Jul, Tauranga RSA. Crew and family of HMZS Otago and HMZS Canterbury protest voyages to Mururoa atoll in 1973. Contact: Peter Mitchell, President, Mururoa Veterans’ Association – 2/87 Fraser St, Tauranga 3112; 07 5776704; 021 1792136; get_over_it@xtra.co.nz. Chris Turver – 06 3643640; 027 2301601; chris. turver@xtra.co.nz. POWS/FAMILIES OF POWS, STALAG XVIIIZ (AUSTRIA) & SURROUNDING CAMPS MEETING & COMMEMORATION 26-28 Jul, Wolfsberg, Austria. Friday evening: Get-together and reception with the mayor of Wolfsberg, Town Hall. Saturday morning: Visit to exhibition at Wolfsberg Museum; visit to the former site of the camp; commemorative ceremony at the cemetery for POWs who died between 1941 and 1945. Saturday afternoon: Meeting with local families who were in contact with allied POWs during the war; sightseeing in Wolfsberg. Sunday morning: Visit to former work camps, such as Lavamund, in the area. Sunday evening: Farewells. Contact: Ian Brown, United Kingdom – ian.brown47@ btinternet.com.
AUGUST ROYAL NEW ZEALAND RETURNED & SERVICES ASSOCIATION NATIONAL POOL TOURNAMENT 9-11 Aug, Warkworth & Districts RSA. 64-team (two players) knock-out championship draw. Plate and consolation plate events for first and second-round losers. Entries accepted on first-come basis, close 1 Jul. Contact: Secretary/manager, Warkworth & Districts RSA, 28 Neville St, Warkworth 0910; 09 4258568; wwrsa@xtra.co.nz.
5/7 RNZIR SESQUICENTENNIAL COMMEMORATIONS 9-11 Aug, Wellington. 5/7 RNZIR will host serving and ex-service personnel of 5 WWCT and/or 7 WnHB over weekend – Friday: Registration, meet and greet function. Saturday: 1200hrs, unit charter parade through Wellington (from Cenotaph by Parliament, along Lambton Quay, Willis St and Mercer St to Civic Square for review by Wellington mayor; evening, sesquicentennial formal function. Sunday: unit church parade, St Paul’s Cathedral. Registration required for functions. Contact: 5/7 RNZIR adjutant Capt
Michael O’Connor – 04 5275604: 3477604 (DteLN); michael.c’connor@NZDF.mil.nz. NEW ZEALAND BATTLE OF CRETE ASSOCIATION 20 Aug, 10.30am, Mount Maunganui RSA. Contact: Deidre Hauschild – c/- Mt Maunganui RSA,P.O.Box 4011, Mt Maunganui South 3116; 07 5764362; ldhausch@xtra.co.nz.
SEPTEMBER RNZRSA NATIONAL GOLF TOURNAMENT 23-26 Sep, Lakeview course, Rotorua, hosted Rotorua RSA. Open to financial members of an RSA who are 18-hole NZGA affiliated members of registered golf clubs. Limited 120 players. Entries close: August 15. Contact: Rotorua RSA – 07 3478535; rotrsa@xtra.co.nz.
OCTOBER RNZN ELECTRICAL REUNION 10-14 Oct, Picton. For Ems and REMs. Application forms, with programme, availabe from and enquiries to: Roger Campbell – 29 Devon St, Picton; 03 5735107; 021 2077620; rogercampbell@clear. net.nz. 3RD RNZE BRANCH, SAPPERS’ ASSOCIATION 14-16 Oct, visit to Coolangatta to celebrate Sappers Day 2013 with colleagues in Australia. Contact: Eric Elley, vice-president – 03 3107385; sunnyanderic@clear.net.nz. RNZA ASSN AGM/REUNION 18-20 Oct, Palmerston North/Linton, in conjunction with 16 Field Regiment. All gunners, past and present,invited. Registration details to come. Contact: Tony McLeod – rnza.association@ gmail.com; RNZAA.org.nz. CITY OF CHRISTCHURCH CADET UNIT 25TH ANNIVERSARY REUNION 25-27 Oct (Labour Weekend), Christchurch. Weekend of festivities for past cadets, officers and supporters. Enquiries: cccu.25@gmail.com; 03 3439557 Mondays 1800-2100 hours. HMNZS TOROA 85TH-YEAR REUNION 25 -27 Oct (Labour weekend). Contact: Toroa Reunion, 211St Andrews St, Dunedin;03 4778883; amanda.buchanan@nzdf.mil.nz ROYAL AUSTRALIAN CORPS OF SIGNALS ASSN NATIONAL REUNION 25-28 Oct (Labour weekend), Barossa Valley, South Australia. Register: http://www.rasigs.com. Contact: RASigs Assn SA – Bruce Long, 0417 227533; president.sa@rasigs.com. 2RNZIR BAND REUNION 25-28 Oct (Labour Weekend). Expressions of interest sought. Contact: Les Thompson – 03 323 8984; 021 02227739; steelhip@clear.net.nz.
novEMBER HMNZS TARANAKI, ALL-SHIPS REUNION 1-3 Nov, Papatoetoe Cosmopolitan Club, Auckland. Shipmates from all RNZN ships invited. Expressions of interest close 30 Apr, registration forms available 1 May. Contact: Reunion2013@hmnzstaranaki.org. Bill Sedgwick – P.O.Box 72831, Papakura 2244; 09 2963022. Bob Gage 09 4838502. Charlie Govind 09 2998089. Raniera (Dan) Bassett 09 2637247. REME ASSOCIATION & BSXBA NEW ZEALAND BRANCHES Annual meeting/reunion, 8-10 Nov, Rotorua RSA. Contact: Alan Butler, chairman – 09 2998318; butlerallee@xtra.co.nz. Joy Bell, secretary, 09 5333525; emjabee@xtra.co.nz. New members welcome. NEW ZEALAND BATTLE OF CRETE ASSOCIATION 19 Nov (luncheon), 10.30am,
Mount Maunganui RSA. Contact: Deidre Hauschild – c/- Mt Maunganui RSA,P.O.Box 4011, Mt Maunganui South 3116; 07 5764362; ldhausch@xtra.co.nz. NEW ZEALAND MALAYA VETERANS’ ASSOCIATION (INC) NATIONAL REUNION 2013 ‘Taste East Coast’, 21-24 Nov, Gisborne. Registration forms: www.malayavets.co.nz. Enquiries: Colin Moana – col.bev@slingshot. co.nz; 117 Roebuck Rd, Gisborne; 06 8686353. RNZEME CORPS DAY/ST ELIGIUS DAY Nov-1 Dec, Rotorua RSA. Contact: Rolly Rolston – 07 3481055; 07 3481055 (fax); rotrsa@xtra.co.nz.
JANUARY 2014 PARKINSON CLASS 1964 - REGULAR FORCE CADET SCHHOL REUNION 17-19 Jan, Rotorua RSA. 50-year aniversary of joining the army. Contact: Gordon Forrester, RF cadet 196466, reunion organiser – 04 5262349 (home); 027 4316799; gordon.forrester@xtra.co.nzon Forrester NEW ZEALAND CADET FORCES 150TH ANNIVERSARY Jan, camp Waiouru. Contact: Sqn Ldr Bruce Sinclair
MAY 2ND CMT-NATIONAL SERVICE REUNION 3-5 May, Wellington. Will mark 64 years since the Compulsory Military Training (November 1950-August 1958) and 52 years since National Service (May 1962-August 1972) started in New Zealand. Programme: Friday evening - meetand-greet, Saturday – morning, bus trips round points of interest in the city on Saturday morning; evening, formal dinner, banquet hall,Parliament Buildings; Sunday morning church service. Expressions of interest close Jun 30, 2013; registrations form available from Jul 6. Contact: John Hannan – 021 234803; jhannan@ paradise.net.nz; John Mudgway – 06 3788055; 027 6840842; johnmudgway@xtra.co.nz.
SEPTEMBER HMNZS CANTERBURY REUNION – 1970 TO 1980 COMMISSIONS 26-28 Sep, Tauranga RSA.Register expressions of interest to: Bill Newell – 82 Twin Oak Ave, Papamoa 3118; 07 5421412; newell1@outlook.co.nz.
OCTOBER - 2015 RNZN ENGINE ROOM BRANCH REUNION (PROPOSED) Napier. Expressions of interest. Contact: Dennis Zachan – 12 Norrie Place,Tamatea, Napier; 06 8442201; 021 673242.
2016 23 INTAKE AIRMAN CADET SCHOOL/5 CET 5OTH ANNIVERSARY (PROPOSED) If interested, contact: Dave Bryant – davebryant@ telus.net.
CALLS TO JOIN AUCKLAND CMT/NS ASSOCIATION INC Welcomes all ex-CMT & National Service men who trained with the army, navy and air force under the scheme. Contact: Brian Caltaux – 09 4202004; caltauxbands@xtra.co.nz. BRITISH AIRBORNE FORCES (NZ) INC Are (or were) you para-Trained? Would you like to meet other ex-(or even current) paras, from the Parachute Regiment, SAS, or from the supporting arms - engineers, signals, medics, artillery etc? Would you like to help maintain the Airborne spirit around the world, and particularly in New Zealand? We meet regularly in Northern (Auckland to Taupo), Central (Taupo to Wellington) and Southern (South Island). Full membership - all
ranks of Parachute Regiment, SAS, supporting arms, and those with special service to British Airborne Forces; associate membership - immediate family; afflilate membership - those in airborne units of other countries. Contact: Frank Clark, president – 04 2336123. Roy Tilley, secretary – 04 5660850, rmt@xtra.co.nz. Website, www. britishairbornenz.tripod.com. CANT NMWC REGIMENTAL ASSOCIATION Seeking members to rekindle their activity with the association. Regular meetings at Papanui RSA, Christchurch. Send rank, name, address, phone number and e-mail address to: Frank Newsome – 107a Langdons Rd, Papanui Christchurch 8053; 03 3525471; frankandaudrey@clear.net.nz. CMT ASSOCIATION CHRISTCHURCH INC If you took part in CMT or National Service training in the army, navy or air force, contact: Alison Smith, secretary – CMT Assoc Inc, 21 Kearneys Rd, Bromley, Christchurch 8062, 03 9817623, legles@paradise.net.nz. CMT ASSOCIATION SOUTH AUCKLAND BRANCH Ex-CMT and National Servicemen welcome. Meets monthly, 2nd Saturday, Papakura RSA. Contact: John Bennetts – jandsbennetts@xtra. co.nz; 09 2986847. CMT ASSOCIATION SOUTH CANTERBURY BRANCH Ex-CMT and National Servicemen welcome. Contact: Bruce Townshend – 14 Ewen Rd, Temuka 7920; 03 6156637; Temuka-RSA@ xtra.co.nz. HOROWHENUA ARTILLERY ASSOCIATION – LEVIN 50th year, seeking new members - gunners, ex-gunners, associated corps. Meets May and September to celebrate Gunners’ Day and El Alamein Day, lunch, Levin RSA. Contact: Adam Gibson – 34 Gordon Place, Levin; 06 3684187. EX-RAF HALTON, RAF LOCKING OR RAF CRANWELL AIRCRAFT, RNZAF APPRENTICES. Contact: Ed Austin – 67/46 Beresford St, Pukekohe 2120, 09 2392698, edaustin38@gmail.com. HMNZS LACHLAN 1949–53 FIRST TWO COMMISSIONS 60th ANNIVERSARY, FINAL REUNION Contact: Keith Goddard - 4 Kimberley Rd, Waihi 3610, 07 8633318, 021 2516220, goddz@ xtra.co.nz. Frank Robb – 14/57 Enfield St, Hamilton 3200, 07 8644246. ITALY STAR ASSOCIATION (CHRISTCHURCH BRANCH) New members, veterans, family members, historians. Contact: Peter Scott, chairman – 27 Kenwyn Ave, St.Albans, Christchurch 8052; 03 3556732; peter.judy@actrix.co.nz. MOUNTED TROOPERS ASSOCIATION North Island branch of Royal NZ Armoured Corps Association. The $25 annual subscription fee includes membership of both the MTA and the RNZAC. Anyone who is serving or has served in RNZAC units in any way is eligible join - the only criteria is that you must have worn the ‘Black Beret’. Spouses of deceased eligible personnel are welcome. The MTA aims to bring former comrades together again through national reunions, members’ birthdays, funerals, unveilings, and regimental occasions to which the association is invited. Managed by a six-person trust board - Chris Cooper (chairman), Bob Williams (secretary), Christine Campbell (treasurer), Doug Morrow, Geoff Kreegher and Colin Campbell. Prospective members in New Zealand should contact nearest troop co-ordinator; if you’re overseas, contact the MTA secretary. Contacts: Secretary - Bob Williams, P.O. Box 384, Thames 3540, New Zealand; +64 7 8686506; bw.crescent@xtra.co.nz. Troop coordinators – Auckland: Moa Larkins, P.O.Box 300014, Albany, Auckland 752; manofaction@ slingshot.co.nz. Waikato/Bay of Plenty:Chris Cooper, cooppen@xtra.co.nz; 07 5444917. Hawke’s
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RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
SOLE baptist minister KILLED IN ACTION
in the New Plymouth Central Baptist Church. It is possible Ray did not know of Arthur’s death. Ray Ambury’s name is on the roll of honour at the gates of New Plymouth Boys’ High School. A set of stained glass windows at the New Plymouth Central Baptist Church is believed to be a memorial to his brothers (the names were removed when the windows were moved to the new church in 1972). Bancourt, where Ray Ambury was killed, is a village about 4 kilometres east of Bapaume in the Pas de Calais region. It was occupied by Commonwealth forces in 1917, and lost a
year later during the German spring offensive 1918. Recaptured by the New Zealand Division (in particular 2nd Auckland) on August 30, it remained in Allied hands until the end of the war. The task of capturing Bancourt was allotted to 2Auck. 1Wgtn was to co-operate with and, if necessary support 2Auck. Once both Bancourt and Fermiecourt were captured, 1Wgtn was to push forward to Bancourt Ridge and gain touch with the battalions on the flanks. 2Wgtn was to be in reserve. However, orders were late reaching the front(because of darkness and shell-torn country), and as the troops assembled for the attack, they were subject to severe bombardment and sustained a number of casualties. 1Wgtn attacked, but 2Auck was not ready and postponed the start, making the operation difficult for 1Wgtn. Both sides made and lost gains until eventually, the battle reached a stalemate with 1Wgtn having slightly improved its original position. The battalion lost 49 men, 166 were wounded, and 11 were missing. On September 1, Sgt John Gilroy Grant (Taranaki Company) won the Victoria Cross, the first awarded to 1Bn. That night 1Wgtn was relieved by 2Otago, with 2Bge taking over the line.
“Historical accounts also reveal that Bishop Cleary learned Te Reo Maori, made arduous visits to remote rural communities, and took a special interest in the education and care of disadvantaged children,” says diocese spokeswoman Lyndsay Freer. “His crucifix and its welded bullet casings stand as a reminder of unselfish service given for God and country by an outstanding man who had little regard for his own personal safety and well-being in the heat of battle,” she says. Cleary, the son of an Irish farmer, was born in Wexford in 1859. He studied widely in Europe, and worked in Ireland, France and Spain before going to Australia in 1888, three years after his ordination. During 10 years in Australia he became an ardent controversialist in the press, and published his first book. When he moved to New Zealand in 1898 he was immediately invited to become editor of the Tablet. During his editorship the paper received
marks of papal approbation, he published two more books, and was regular contributor to newspapers and journals. At the end of 1909 he visited South America, where he established Catholic news agencies and linked them with centres in New York and Australia. In 1918, while bishop of Auckland, he founded The Month, which he edited until his death. His avowed intention was to provide statements of the Catholic viewpoint on current events in response to what he declared a “campaign of defamation of Catholics” being conducted in New Zealand. He intended the paper to be strictly non-partisan in party politics, and successfully adhered to this policy. When he died at Auckland in December 1929, he was accorded a huge funeral. Warm tributes from the leaders of other denominations testified to his success in reducing sectarian tensions and in beginning to bring the Catholic church firmly into the mainstream of New Zealand life.
Tony Goodwin Rev Ray Ambury 63991 Wellington Infantry Regiment is believed to have been the only New Zealand Baptist minister killed in action. He resigned from his Wanganui East pastorate in 1917, enlisted on August 1, 1917 and entered camp at Tauherenikau, Wairarapa where Rev J.K.Archer was chaplain. (Archer, formerly the minister at Vivian St Baptist Church, Plymouth where the Ambury family worshipped, was himself devastated that at the age of 52, he had been refused overseas service by the army.) Ambury embarked for the United Kingdom with the 32nd Reinforcements on November 22, 1917. He was posted to active service in France March 1918 with No.1 NZ Entrenching Battalion, then, in April, to 7th Company 1st Battalion, Wellington Infantry Regiment. He was killed at Bancourt on August 30, 1918 and is buried in the Bancourt British Cemetery. Born at Cheltenham, England on September 17, 1886, Ambury emigrated to New Zealand with his family in 1893. The Amburys had a drapery business in New Plymouth and he went to New Plymouth Boys’ High School. He worked in engineering before becoming a
Left: Rev Ray Ambury (left). Right: This set stained glass windows, at the New Plymouth Baptist Church, is believed to be a memorial his two brothers.
theological student at Knox College, Dunedin from 1911-14. Wanganui East was his first pastorate. He married Mildred Sarah Oxenham in 1915; they had no children. Ambury Place, New Plymouth is named after the family, and the Amburys are still associated with the New Plymouth Central Baptist Church Ray’s eldest brother, Percy, who had been a missionary student at Knox, died of pneumonia in 1913. Another brother, Arthur, was killed in a rescue attempt while climbing Mt Egmont in 1918. A monument to his memory is behind North Egmont Lodge, and there is a memorial plaque
BISHOP went to resign, ended up on FRONt line A small bronze crucifix welded from World War I rifle bullet cartridges stands as a testament in Auckland to the bravery and selflessness of a Roman Catholic bishop who tried to rescue the wounded on the fields of France. The crucifix belonged to Bishop Henry Cleary, the Catholic Bishop of Auckland from 1910 to 1929, who took his duties right to the frontline. When Cleary’s original wooden crucifix was badly damaged in the trenches, the Kiwi soldiers gathered up spent shell cases and cobbled together the new crucifix for him. In 1916, Henry Cleary travelled from Auckland to London to seek medical treatment, intending to resign because of poor health. Instead, he discovered there was no Catholic chaplain with the New Zealand 2nd Brigade in France and volunteered to serve on the front line, near Fromelles. After just a night and a day of fighting at Fromelles, 1500 British and 5533 Australian soldiers were killed, wounded or taken prisoner by the Germans. The soldiers’ bodies and many wounded were left on the battlefield in no man’s land – unable to be recovered and buried. Although a temporary truce had been made with the Germans to allow the wounded to be rescued, it was vetoed by senior officers, and the New Zealand troops were deeply troubled by their inability to recover and bury their comrades. Cleary and an officer crawled out and lay in
Bay: Willie Walker, 19 Pania Place, Parklands Estate, Napier; willieanddenise@hotmail.co.nz. Taranaki: Lenny Robinson, LENR@xtra.co.nz; 06 7638594. Central/Soputhern North Island: Stew Couchman, blongami@xtra.co.nz; 06 3258593. NEW ZEALAND BRANCH, ROYAL MARINES ASSOCIATION Meets two-monthly, 2pm, Pt Chevalier RSA, Auckland. Full membership to serving or former RM, RMR and RN, HM Forces RM units, family members, Royal Marines Cadets. Contact: Peter Collins – 634 Papakura-Clevedon Rd, Ardmore R.D.2, Papakura 2582; 09 2967648; 021 1417119; peter-collins@xtra.co.nz; www.royalmarinesassociation.org/nz/rma_nz_home.html. NEW ZEALAND KOREA VETERANS ASSOCIATION INC Veteran membership available to NZDF members who have completed a posting in the United Nations Military Commission since 1 Jan 1958 and have been awarded appropriate medallic recognition. Membership details: Douglas Callander, secretary – 23 Longcroft Tce, Newlands, Wellington 6037; 04 4783238; 04 4783602 (fax);
Henry Cleary
the snow amid the remains of the dead. In his diaries, Cleary comments several times on the dead lying “out there” and how the Germans used to shoot burial parties. Just 50 metres from the enemy line he said a De Profundis – a psalm that normally forms part of the prayers for the dead and is recited at Catholic funerals – over the bodies. On his return to his duties as bishop of Auckland in October 1917, Cleary became a founder member of the RSA, and opened the doors of several Catholic schools to serve as hospitals during the flu epidemic. The Catholic Diocese of Auckland says Cleary had a reputation as a scholar and was a longserving editor of the New Zealand Tablet before being appointed the sixth bishop of Auckland.
Cleary and an officer crawled out and lay in the snow amid the remains of the dead. Just 50 metres from the enemy line he said a De Profundis over the bodies.
callanderd@clear.net.nz.
5032; www.rfcadet,org.nz.
NEW ZEALAND MALAYAN VETERANS ASSOCIATION INC Welcomes new members who served with Commonwealth forces or police in Malaya/Malaysia/Borneo or Singapore. Contact: Barry Allison – 6 Coldstream Rd, Gisborne 4010; 06 8677284; bazbarbzinggizzie@xtra.co.nz.
RNZAF COMMAND AND STAFF COLLEGE GRADUATES The New Zealand Defence Force Command and Staff College has formed an alumni association. Records of previous associations’ members were misplaced during move from Whenuapai to Trentham in 2004. Contact is if you wish to join, would like latest information, or wish to re-connect with former colleagues and course members. Contact: Alumni secretary NZDF CSC – Trentham Military Camp, Private Bag 905, Upper Hutt 5140; 04 5271008; 04 5271009 (fax); csc.alumni@nzdf.mil.nz.
OX & BUCKS LI, KINGS ROYAL RIFLE CORPS, RIFLE BRIGADE AND ROYAL GREEN JACKETS All past members of RGJ and former regiments invited. Contact: Frank Jones – 09 4766974. RAF CHANGI ASSOCIATION Includes HQ FAR EAST AIRFORCE, seeks NZ members ex RAF or RNZAF, who served at RAF Changi 1946-71. Contact: B W Lloyd – 32 Redwood, Burnham, Bucks, SL1 8JN, UK. REGULAR FORCE CADET ASSOCIATION (INC) Provides contact between ex-cadets and enables them to re-establish contacts. Membership – $10 a year (July 1-June 30). Contact: Secretary, RF Cadet Association, P.O.Box 715, Paraparaumu
ROYAL NEW ZEALAND NAVAL ASSOCIATION, CANTERBURY BRANCH All who served in RNZN or Commonwealth navies, and their partners, welcome. Monthly meetings, regular social gettogethers, ship visits, four newsletters a year. Contact: Miles McIlraith (ex-RNZN), treasurer – 4987 State Highway 75, R.D., Little River 7591; 03 3251937; 03 3251936 (fax).
SOUTH AFRICAN MILITARY VETERANS OF AUSTRALASIA (SAMVOA) All who served in uniform in South Africa and now live in New Zealand are invited to join. SAMVOA, which is running in Australia, is intended to preserve memories, and commemorate those who were injured, and fell in action. Attends Remembrance Day and Anzac Day parades, and regular meetings. Information and application form: Chris Pattison – 021 2316612; ytrose@vodafone.co.nz. THE NEW ZEALAND MALAYA VETERANS’ ASSOCIATION welcomes new members who served with Commonwealth Forces or Police in Malaya/Malaysia/Borneo or Singapore. Contact: Barry Allison – 6 Coldstream Rd, Gisborne 4010, 06 8677284; bazbarbzingizzie@xtra.co.nz; www. malaya.vets.co.nz TS VINDICATRIX ASSOCIATION Ex-Vindicatrix boys – those who served on the training ship – invited to join the association’s Lower North Island branch. Write: Arthur Woolard – 21 Pohutukawa Drive, R.D.1, Levin 5571.
32 RSA Life – Mount Wellington/Panmure RSA
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
club thrives with Public eXposure Karen Phelps
Just a year ago the Mt Wellington/Panmure RSA was losing money so fast it looked likely it would have to close. Now the RSA is an outstanding success story. It signed up 311 new members between November 2012 and March 2013. And, according to president Leon Matthews, membership continues to soar at a rate of 15-20 a week. Even more surprisingly, it hasn’t taken a lot of money to turn the club around so quickly. The secret has been a partnership with Mt Wellington Trust Hotels. Matthews says that back in March last year, the RSA was in such financial trouble it couldn’t even afford to pay wages. An application for a bank loan had been turned down and it was time for the club to make some hard decisions. Although the atmosphere and camaraderie was excellent, several factors were contributing to the club’s demise, he says. The tragic killings at the RSA by William Bell were still strong in the minds of locals and had contributed to dwindling numbers. The premises were out of date and no longer attracting people through
Our real goal is to make Mt Wellington/Panmure RSA the place to be in East Auckland.
PHOTOS: Top left, Mt Wellington Trust Foundation chairman Mike Murray speaks at the ‘signing of the agreement” function. Mt Wellington Trust Hotels general manager David Comery is on the left, with Mt Wellington/ Panmure RSA president Leon Matthews on the right. Above: The Mt Wellington/ Panmure RSA committee all sport their smartest smiles after five months of intense work putting the arrangement together. Left: David Comery and Leon Matthews seal the deal with a shake.
the door. And all of this was compounded by a hospitality industry that was suffering across the board. A chance meeting with David Comery, general manager of Mt Wellington Trust Hotels, proved the catalyst for change for both organisations. Leon Matthews says the Mt Wellington Trust Hotels’ venue at 163 Queen St (Panmure’s main street) was also suffering in the economic climate. The venue had been refurbished with the aim of attracting white-collar workers, but this did not suit the more working-class, local clientele of Panmure, an area where returned servicemen might live. Comery and Matthews immediately saw synergies and a possible way to turn around
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their respective businesses. Over subsequent months the Mt Wellington/ Panmure RSA and the Mt Wellington Trust Hotels came to an arrangement where they could combine forces. The RSA operates from the trust ‘s venue. The trust covers operating costs, and the RSA pays a 10% share of profit over budget. The venue operates two bars: the Corner Bar, which has a more casual atmosphere with a TAB, pokies, dartboard and 8 ball table; the Landmark Bar which, although open to the general public, is the RSA base, with a more upmarket feel. RSA members enjoy 25% discounts on food and drinks, which is as simple as swiping a card at
the till. A central restaurant services both bars. Running facilities that are open both to the general public and RSA members could have been fraught with difficulties, but Matthews says the change has been relatively smooth. Indeed, a key benefit for the RSA has been regular contact with the general public. “Lots of people didn’t realise they could join an RSA, they thought you had to have some sort of connection with the military to join. So we have done a lot of promotional work and the people have flocked in. At best in the old venue, we used to have 60 people in the bar on a Friday night; now we might have 200. “This increased exposure to the general public was really brought home to us on Anzac Day when a lot of people turned up who had never been to an Anzac Day service before. They brought their kids along as well – it was great.” The RSA has six sports sections and an active women’s section. Wednesday and Friday nights are designated club nights with jackpot draws and raffles. Every second Friday night, there’s live entertainment. Mt Wellington/Panmure RSA membership is now 750, and growing. Plans include the possibility of extending the building outwards and upwards when Auckland’s new regulations come into effect. “Our real goal is to make the Mt Wellington/ Panmure RSA the place to be in East Auckland,” says Leon Matthews.
Good Deal Electrical Paul Moir for all your electrical needs. No job too small.
All domestic industrial and commercial work at good rates
Phone: 09 570 4306 Mobile: 027 342 4528
Proudly supporting Mt Wellington / Panmure RSA
33
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Local RSAs Kaikohe & District Memorial RSA (Inc)
Northland
Northen Wairoa RSA Club
We are open everyday from 11am
All Visitors Most Welcome
Clubrooms open 11am Meals: Thurs Fri & Sat 6-8pm Light Lunches: Always available Catering on request 09 439 8164
KAITAIA FAR NORTH (Kaitaia) RSA CLUB
Matthews Avenue, Kaitaia When visiting the Far North you are welcomed to visit our Clubrooms where comfort and friendship is assured. Billiards - Snooker - Pool - Bowls - Darts
Pleasant lounge and excellent bar facilities
• • • • •
Sky TV TAB Pod Gaming Machines Pool Tables Courtesy Van Available
Courtesy Coach Available Please phone (09) 408 0423
“Friendliest Club in Town” 158 Broadway, Kaikohe Ph 09 401 2368 Fax 09 401 2370 kaikohersa@xtra.co.nz “Look us up on Facebook”
Visitors always welcome ANY CHANGES TO CLUB ADVERTS OR CLASSIFIED ADVERTS PLEASE CONTACT DAVE McKEE Ph: 03 983 5518 Fax: 03 983 5552 Email:davem@waterfordpress.co.nz
THE HUB OF THE CITY
Warmly welcomes visitors to our Clubrooms at 7 Rust Ave Bar Service 7 days Snooker, Pool, Darts, Gaming Courtesy Coach Bistro Wed to Fri 12-2 & 5-8p.m. Saturday 6-8p.m. PH 09 438 3792 admin@whangareirsa.co.nz
AUCKLAND
RSA
114 Hobsonville Road Ph: 09 416 7227 Restaurant Ph: 09 416 9239
A warm, warm welcome is assured to all members and visitors. Special welcome to local and outof town visitors.
Open Tues from 4pm, Wed - Thurs from 2pm Fri - Sun from Midday. • Restaurant open Fri - Sun lunch, Tues-Sun - Dinner excellent meals at reasonable prices • Live entertainment last Friday of each month, Karaoke all other Fridays. • Excellent Bar staff & service • Large car park. Easy bus turnnig • Coach Tours welcome - advance notice helpful • Facilities available for function hire • Other facilities include darts & pool
THE SMALL RSA WITH THE BIG HEART
Opening Hours 11am Mon - Sat 3pm Sun Gunners' Restaurant
Lunch 12 - 1.30pm Wed- Fri Dinner 5 - 8.30pm Thurs-Sat Full Bar Facilities 18 Pokies * Mystery J/P * Sky Tv * Pool * Snooker * Darts * Bowls
Live Entertainment & Dancing every Friday evening.
Call in on your way north & view our memorabilia tables - A warm welcome awaits you
RUSSELL RSA 1 Chapel St Russell 0202 Ph: 09 403 7773 Fax: 09 403 7885Email: russellrsa@xtra.co.nz www.russellrsa.org.nz
OPEN 7 DAYS FROM 11AM TILL CLOSE
Diggers Restaurant open 7 days Lunch & Dinner Bar snacks available Pool, Darts, Gaming Machines Huge outdoor courtyard
Come and enjoy our clubrooms while holidaying in historical Russell We will make you welcome
Ph 09 407 8585 37 Cobham Road
KERIKERI
RSA (Inc) Visitors and Guests Most Welcome Bistro Wed-Sun 5.30 - 8.30pm
Open Seven Days
A warm invitation is extended TO RSA members & Guests to the friendliest RSA in the West
If you are in town give us a call. Ph: 09 828 5000
TAKAPUNA RSA CLUB
Cnr Northcote Rd & Mary Poynton Cres
Ph: 09 489 6738
The Razza....the place to be.
Welcomes visiting RSA members. Open 7 days from 11.00am. Catering 7 days from 12 noon. Monday nights for Rebel (Outdoor) Bowls. Wednesday nights for Texas Hold’ Em poker. Friday nights for Karaoke.
SILVERDALE
43A Vipond Rd, Whangaparaoa, Turn off at top of Silverdale Hill onto Whangaparaoa Peninsula. Vipond Rd is 2.7km on left A special welcome to members of clubs with reciprocal visiting rights to use our club facilities. Comfort & friendship is assured
Recreation Dr, Birkenhead, North Shore Ph: 09 418 2424 Fax: 09 418 3054 Email: secman@birkenheadrsa.com www.birkenheadrsa.com We welcome all RSA members & their guests to enjoy the friendly atmosphere & excellent facilities at our clubrooms
Clubrooms Open Sat - Mon 11am Tues - Fri 9 am Bar Open 7 Days from 11am Don Stott Memorial Restaurant
Provides excellent ecconomical A la Carte meals Wed-Friday 12 -2pm Wed-Sunday from 5.30pm. Groups by arrangement
Live Entertainment
Wed: 1.30-4pm. Fri & Sat: from 7.00pm Pool * Darts * I/D Bowls * TAB Large Screen Sky * Gaming Machines Tea/Coffee & light Meals anytime
ALL NEW MEMBERS WELCOME
Mt Wellington Panmure RSA 163 Queens Rd, Panmure
Ph: 09 570 5913 Fax: 09 570 5903 Email secrsa@vodafone.co.nz Bar Menu Seven Days. Bus loads by arrangement. Live Entertainment every 2nd Friday
Darts - Pool - Snooker - Gaming Machines - Courtesy coach available for local pick-ups / drop-offs When in Auckland Visit our Friendly Club.
Bus Trip Lunches phone Rona
Entertainment & Dancing Fri & Sat night Snooker * Pool * Indoor Bowls * Fishing *Outdoor Bowls * Golf and Darts* Gaming Machines Raffles: Wed, Thurs
Major Games on Big Screen or Weekend Entertainment
Contact Sec/Manager Sue East 09 424 9026 Fax: 09 424 2446
ORAKEI RSA
BAR & TAB FACILITIES Open 7days Gaming Facilities FREYBERG RESTAURANT Lunches: Tues-Sun 12-2pm, Dinner: Wed-Sat 5.30pm open
Band Friday Nights Handy to rail & bus. Shop in New Lynn & relax in our spacious clubrooms
The Best in the West
NEW RETURNED AND SERVICE MEMBERS WELCOME. Inquiries to Sec/Manager 09 636 6644 PO Box 13016, Onehunga
Glen Eden RSA
(Members)
Wed: 11-9pm. Thurs & Fri: 11-11pm. Sat: 11-9pm. Sun: 2-7pm. Bistro Lunch Tues-Fri 12-2pm. Evening Thurs-Fri 6-8pm Function room bookings for catering. Sports sections, gaming machines ,Sky TV, big screen TV Handy to city centre, Ellerslie Race Course, Kelly Tarlton Underwater World, Eastern suburbs, Mission Bay, St Helliers, Remuera etc.
9 Glendale Rd West Auckland Ph: 09 818 4219 Web: www.glenedenrsa.co.nz
Meals Lunch: Tues - Fri. Dinner: Thurs - Sun. Entertainment: Fri & Sat.
We are better than the rest. We are the friendliest in the West
WAIHEKE RSA
INC
Clubrooms and Bar Open 7 Days Restaurant Open 6 Days, closed Monday Take advantage of the free transport to our doorstep for Super Gold Card holders. Spoil yourselves with a trip to our wonderful Island and enjoy our hospitality. Ph: (09) 372 9019 Bar: (09) 372 5554
Restaurant: (09) 372 6655 E-mail: waiheke.rsa@xtra.co.nz
Ph 09 846 8673 1136 Great North Rd
Affiliated Members and Guests Most Welcome Restaurant, Family Karaoke Sundays from 1pm Functions venue available email admin@ptchevrsa.co.nz
Friday night raffles, Entertainment Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun
HOWICK RSA
Phone: 09 534 9702 • 25 Wellington St Howick
When visiting Auckland’s Eastern Suburbs call into our pleasant clubrooms and enjoy our hospitality
IN THE OF HOWICK
Te Atatu Memorial
RSA Inc 1 Harbour View Rd, Te Atatu
Phone 834 36 98
Martin & Jill Crump welcomes you to Te Atatu RSA Restaurant Hours of Trade: Lunch Friday 12 - 2pm Dinner Wed - Sat 5.30 - 8.30 Sun 5.30 - 8.00 Entertainment Sathurday 13th July Start time 7pm
Country Music Trevor V. Stevens Music Male Artist 2010 & 2012 Kylie Austin Entertainer of the Year 2007
Memorial RSA (Inc)
2 Veronica St Ph: 09 827 3411 Where a friendly welcome is assured. A must stopover when visiting Auckland
Snooker - Pool - Darts - Warriors Supporters Section
We have excellent facilities for reunions and other functions
Ph: 09 528 6245 & 09 521 2710
Hours: Mon : 12-7.30pm. Tues:11am-8pm
Phone 834 36 98
NEW LYNN
The Orpheus Restaurant Open Thurs - Sat lunch 12 - 2 pm, dinner 5.30 - 8pm
Bus trips catered for by request.
29 Belgium Street, Ostend
BIRKENHEAD RSA
28 Neville St Warkworth Ph 09 425 8568
663 SWANSON RD - PH 833 9013
MEALS Lunch: Mon to Fri Dinner: Everynight Entertainment:Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun
Open: 11am Mon-Sat. Noon on Sun
www.whangareirsa.co.nz
WARKWORTH & DISTRICTS RSA Inc
Meals Our spacious Club rooms allow us to cater for large or small groups Lunch every Friday 12 - 2pm We have large outdoor garden area, Big Screen for major games, Sky T.V., pool, bowls, darts, cards, fishing, golf, quiz.
Family Restaurant Hrs Lunch: 12-2pm, Tues-Sat. 12.30pm-2pm Sun Dinner 5.30-8.30pm Wed-Sat, 5.30-7.30pm Tues & Sun Note Sunday Lunch & Dinner Carvery
HOBSONVILLE
WHANGAREI
Come & visit your mates. A friendly Welcome Assured
11am - 11.30pm Sun 1pm - 9pm
Hours 11am-10pm, Mon to Sat. Noon-6pm Sun
Family Restaurant - Meals Wed Thurs Friday and by arrangement.
Overlooking the Racecourse
MEMORIAL RSA
Hours Mon toThurs 11am - 11pm. Fri & Sat
Restaurant hours Mon and Thurs 6.00 -7.45pm or by arrangement Membership Night on Monday
Hokianga Rd Dargaville Ph: 09 439 8164
AVONDALE RSA
SWANSON
PAPATOETOE
DISTRICT RSA (Inc)
22 Wallace Rd Ph: 09 278 6372 Email: papatoetoersa@xtra.co.nz Bar Hours Mon 11am -7.30pm Tues, Wed: 11am - 10pm Thurs: 11am - 10.30pm Fri: 11am - 10pm Sat: 11am - 11pm Sun: noon - 7pm BISTRO Lunch: Tues -Fri 12-1.00pm Dinner: Tues 6pm - 7.30pm Thurs Fri Sat 6pm - 8.00pm. Ph: 09 278 6374
(Hours may vary without prior notice) Social Nights with live bands: Thurs & fortnightly Saturday. Family Nights - have entertainment on the second Friday of the month and starting in mid-July on Friday nights, Housie, Trivia and Karaoke
Snooker Gaming Machines 8 Ball I/D Bowls Darts Sky Tv
Whether you are going to or from the Airport or just passing through pop in & spend a relaxing & friendly time with us.
We Are Your Airport Club
Fridays & Saturdays from 7 pm DINE & DANCE LIVE MUSIC www.howickrsa.co.nz
HENDERSON RSA
66-70 Railside Ave Ph (09) 838 9012 www.hsnrsa.co.nz
Service with a smile, and bar prices better than most. 18 gaming machines, self service TAB, Housie every Thursday, live entertainment Friday and Saturday evenings, 4 snooker tables, 3 pool tables and 8 competition dart boards. 5 big screen TV’s.
Whatever you’re interested in we’ve got it covered, visit us today!
EAST COAST BAYS RSA (Inc)
15 Bute Road Browns Bay Ph: 09 478 8033 North of the Harbour Bridge
When heading north, staying or visiting the North Shore, stop at East Coast Bays RSA Lunches Tues-Sat 12-2pm.Dinner Wed Carvery 6-8pm Thurs-Sat 6-8.30pm Sun from 5.30pm VISIT OUR CLUBROOMS Open: Mon-Sat from 11am Sun 2-8pm
Dancing Fri & Sat 7.30pm
Coach tours welcome by arrangement
Darts * Pool * Snooker Housie * I/d Bowls * Dinning & Dancing A warm welcome to all members & their guests
34
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Local RSAs MANUREWA
OTOROHANGA MEMORIAL
2-8 Maich Road, Manurewa Phone: 09 267 0515 Office & Fax : 09 266 8673
Now located in The Otorohanga Club, Maniapoto Street, Otorohanga Open 9am Monday to Saturday, 11am Sunday
RSA (Inc)
Lunches: Tues-Sun 12-2pm Dinners: Wed-Sun 5.30-8.30pm Sun: from 5.30pm Anzac Bar: Entertainment every Fri-Sat-Sun Darts : Snooker : 8 Ball : Bowls: Sky Tv : Gaming : TAB
President Graham & members extend the hand of friendship to you & yours and invite local & out of town visitors to our friendly new RSA Clubrooms
All new members most welcome
WAIKATO / KING COUNTRY / bAY OF PLENTY
TE AROHA MEMORIAL RSA (Inc) Rewi Street
Ph 07 884 8124
Club open from Mon 3pm- Tues - Sat 2pm, Meals Available Thurs, Fri, Sat from 6pm A warm, friendly welcome awaits you
VISITORS CORDIALLY WELCOME
OPOTIKI COUNTY RSA INC When passing through Opotiki call in and enjoy our hospitality.
We are the Gateway to East Cape Club Hours: Mon-Sat 1pm till late Sun 2pm till late Meals + Bar Snacks 7 days Membership draw nights Wed, Fri, Sat. Snooker - Pool - Indoor Bowls - Darts St John Street, OPOTIKI. Phone (07) 315 6174
NGARUAWAHIA RSA (Inc)
4 Market St, P: 07 824 8905, E: ngaruawahiarsa@vodafone.co.nz
Friendly social atmosphere. Entertainment including live music, raffles, quizzes. Children welcome till 9:30pm. Pool, Snooker, Darts, Gaming Machines, Sky TV, Courtesy Van
Bar hours: Tues-Sat 12pm until late Restaurant hours: Tues-Sat 12-2pm & 6pm until late
MT MAUNGANUI
RETURNED & SERVICES ASSOCIATION (INC) 544 Maunganui Road, Mount Maunganui THE NEW GENERATION RSA
Clubrooms open 7 days Mon/Tues 10.00am-9.00pm Wed/Thurs 11.00am-10.00pm Fri/Sat 11.00am-11.00pm Sunday noon-8.00pm
Restaurant open 7 days Lunch: Mon/Fri Noon-1.30pm Dinner: Mon/Sat 6.00-8.00pm Sunday: Carvery 5.30pm-7.30pm
Entertainment every Friday & Saturday night, Sundays from 4.00pm Regular Shows. TAB, 18 Gaming Machines, 3 Eight Ball & 8 Snooker Tables, Sky TV, Big Screens & Data Projector, Courtesy Bus, Friendly Members, Great Staff, Wonderful Food, 12 Beers on tap, Excellent Wines, All This in the best climate in NZ Phone / Fax: 07 575 4477 Web: www.mtrsa.co.nz Email: mtrsa@xtra.co.nz Affiliated Members, Guests and Potential Members Welcome
East coast - hawkes bay wairarapa - taranaki manawatu - wellington
RSA (Inc)
Top restaurant with excellent a la carte meals Open Tuesday to Sunday
Gaming Machines T.A.B. Sky Big screen, EFTPOS Entertainment most Friday and Saturday nights 8-ball, Snooker, Darts, Indoor Bowls Function Hall available for Reunion Meetings etc.
HASTINGS RSA Avenue Road West Ph: 06 878 8808 Fax: 06 878 7642
Ample parking (free) for buses and cars
TAUPO
All The Games You Can Play, TAB & Superscreen TVs/Videos
“The Centre Of it All” * Gaming Machines * Sky Tv * Snooker * 8 Ball * Indoor Bowls
Rendezvous Restaurant Wed, Thur, Fri Lunch 12 - 2pm Mon, Wed, Thur, Fri, Sat Dinner 5 - 8 Closed Tuesday and Sunday
Club Hours Mon- Wed: 11am -10pm.
Thurs- Sat: 11am - Late. Sun: 2 - 8pm Horomatangi Street Phone: 07 378 7476 Please visit our wesite at: www.tauporsa.co.nz
TE TE PUKE PUKE
WHAKATANE RSA (Inc)
Richardson St Ph: 07 307 0343 Fax: 07 307 2604 Email: whakatanersa@xtra.co.nz
16 Oxford Street
Hours: Mon 1pm - 6.30 pm, Tues - Sat 11am - 9pm Restaurant open Thurs, Fri and Sat nights. Tues - Lunch
All RSA members & Visitors are most welcome to our warm & friendly, air conditioned club
Taumarunui & District RSA
10 Marae St, Taumarunui PO Box 24 PH: 07 895 7517 FAX: 07 895 8343 Email: taumrsa@xtra.co.nz
MANAGER: John Callinan MEMBERS: 862 Restaurant open 7 nights from 5:30pm Club open daily from 11:00am Sunday from 1:00pm 18 Gaming Machines, Courtesy Coach Charge back facilities to local motels. If you are coming to Taumarunui we can arrange local tours, golf club bookings, Motel Bookings.
Entertainment Centre of Taumarunui
TE AWAMUTU
District Memorial RSA (Inc) 381 ALEXANDER STREET P. 07 8713707 E. tarsa@xtra.co.nz
Turn into the main street at the traffic filter and look for our Rose Garden at the end of the main shopping area.
Bar Hours - Mon-Thurs: 11am- 9pm Fri: 11-11pm. Sun: 1- 8pm
Restaurant Hours
Mon 12 noon to 1pm, 5pm to 7pm. Wed & Thurs 5pm-7pm, Fri & Sat 5pm to 8.30pm Sun Smorgasboard 5pm to 7pm Groups catered for during week on request
VISITORS WELCOME
Restaurant Hours Lunch and Dinner 7 days Bar Snacks Available Gaming Machines - Big Screens - 8 Ball - Snooker Darts - Indoor Bowls - Line Dancing - Function Room Live Entertainment Friday Nights
A Friendly Welcome in Warm Whakatane
MEMORIAL R.S.A. (Inc.) Ngaio Street Ph: 07 888 7190 Open from Mon- Sat 3pm, Sun 4pm.
Poppyfields Restaurant:
Open for bus tours & private functions by arrangement
TOKAANU-TURANGI & Districts Memorial RSA
Ph: 07 386 8717 PO Box 1 Katopu Place Turangi Email: trgirsa@hotmail.com Bar 7 days from 11am Restaurant Thur - Sat evenings Gaming Machines, Snooker, Pool, Darts, Indoor Bowls, Library, Big Screen Sky TV Turn 3rd right from roundabout
‘ROSE of the WAIKATO’
HAMILTON
Combined Returned Services Club
Rostrevor Street, Po Box 9028 Ph 07 8380131 Fax 07 8340170 Email: hamcrsc@clear.net.nz. Web: www.hamcrsc.co.nz
Open 7 Days Club Restaurant Lunches Tues-Fri Dinner Tues-Sun from 5.30pm. FUNCTION BOOKINGS BY ARRANGEMENT 18 Gaming Machines * TAB * Sky Big Screen * ATM *Eft Pos * 8 Ball * Snooker * Euchre * 500 * Darts * I/D Bowls
Naenae Memorial RSA (Inc) 23, Treadwell St, Ph 04 567 8159, Open 7 Days Indoor Bowls * Darts * Snooker Outdoor Bowls * Pentanque
When visiting Hutt Valley call at our comfortable clubrooms.
A WARM WELCOME AWAITS YOU
Otaki & District Memorial RSA
WHANGAMATA RSA (INC) 324 Port Road, Whangamata Ph/Fax: 07 865 9419 Email: whangamata.rsa@actrix.co.nz Web: www.whangamatarsanz.com
Gateway to the Coromandel Peninsula
9 Raukawa Street Ph: 06 36 46221 Open Tues - Sunday Dining room Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sat & Sun roast lunch TAB - Sky - Snooker - Darts Fridays entertainment Affiliated Members and Guests most welcome
Clubrooms Open: 7 days from 11 am Restaurant Open: 6 days from 11 am Closed Mondays Group Bookings, Bus Tours, etc. by arrangement
Entertainment Big Screen TV’s, Snooker, 8 Ball, Darts, Indoor Bowls, Golf, 12 Gaming Machines
Visitors Most Welcome
ROTORUA RSA (Inc)
Haupapa St, Rotorua
We offer a warm welcome to our thermally heated club. Bar open 7 days.
Restaurant Tues-Fri 12-2pm & Tues-Sat 6-8pm New Café Mon-Fri from 9am-2pm Sky TV, Big Screen TV, Snooker, 8 Ball, Darts Indoor Bowls, Flag 500, Mahjong, Line Dancing, Old Time Dancing, 18 Gaming machines, Live bands
ENJOY OUR COMPANY AND MAKE THE STOP
ACHILLES RESTAURANT Welcome to All. Open for lunch Friday from 12 noon. Dinners Mon, Wed & Thu from 5.30; Fri & Sat from 6.00pm All facilities, Gaming Machines. 110 Amohia Street (Just 50 meters off SH1) Tel: 04 902 7927 www.pramrsa.co.nz
SOUTH TARANAKI RSA (Inc) Bar Hours: Mon, Tues 3-7pm Wed 3-9pm, Thurs 3-7pm. Fri, Sat 3-9pm Clubrooms open some mornings Bistro Meals: Fri. 5-7pm
Princess Street Hawera When in our area you are cordially invited to visit our Clubrooms & enjoy our hospitality. A friendly welcome is assured to all.
Registered Military Museum
Rotorua RSA
1072 Haupapa St, Rotorua Phone/Fax: 348 1056 Email: rotrsa@xtra.co.nz www.rotrsa.co.nz
Come and visit our friendly Club the
MATAMATA
GalLipoli Restaurant Ph: 06 876 4739 Open everyday great value meals
Open 7 Days ---- Bar Hours Mon-Thurs 10am-10pm.Fri & Sat 10am till late. Sun 10.30-8pm
Close to motels in the heart of town
MEMORIAL MEMORIAL RSA RSA (Inc) (Inc) Ph: 07 573 7922
Sat: 11-10pm
Open seven Days
RSA TAURANGA 1237 Cameron Road, Greerton, Tauranga Ph 07 578 9654 Fax 07 577 0715 Email: admin@tgarsa.co.nz www.tgarsa.co.nz
Big Screen TV’s, Snooker, Pool, Darts, Indoor Bowl, Cards, 18 Gaming Machines, Live Bands Bar Hours - Open 7 Days - From 11.00am
WANGANUI Great Entertainment...
S BER MEM ME W E N CO WEL
Live Bands 18 Gaming Machines TAB Terminal Big Screen TVs' 8 Ball * Darts * Bowls Euchre * Housie Raffles * Members' Jackpots
Gallipoli Restaurant
Lunch Tuesday to Saturday from 11.30am Dinner Monday & Wednesday to Saturday from 5.30pm Tuesday Pension Day Special - Lunches Whiteboard Dinner Specials
… MEMBERS AND BONA FIDE GUESTS WELCOME ... 170 St Hill Street, Wanganui Phone: Clubrooms 345 5750 * Restaurant 345 4140 *
Courtesy Bus 027 345 5750
Email: admin@wanganuirsa.co.nz * Website: www.wanganuirsa.co.nz
Oaktree Restaurant
Open 7 Days from Breakfast - 7.00am - Lunch - 12.00 noon Dinner - 5.00pm “When in the Bay stay with us” Motor Inn accommodation available Excellent Rates “Visitors Welcome Anytime”
ANY CHANGES TO CLUB ADVERTS OR CLASSIFIED ADVERTS PLEASE CONTACT DAVE McKEE Ph: 03 983 5518 Fax: 03 983 5552 Email:davem@waterfordpress.co.nz
35
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Local RSAs NAPIER RSA 34 Vautier Street, Napier
TARADALE
Office: 06 835 7629 Fax: 06 835 1357 Club: 06 835 1034
A warm, sunshine welcome is extended to all visitors to our modern, comfortable clubrooms
156 Gloucester Street Ph/Fax 06 844 4808
OPEN 7 DAYS PER WEEK Restaurant Open:Lunch: Mon- Sat. Dinner:Mon-Sun
Top meals at reasonable prices
• Live entertainment Fri & Sat nights • Parking • Conference room • Taxi chits available for discounted fares
Membership still open. Affiliated members Welcome
Conveniently located to Marine Parade, motels and city centre THERE ARE NO STRANGERS AMONG US, ONLY FRIENDS WE HAVE NOT MET.
& Districts RSA Inc
Meals Available 7 days - Lunch & Dinner
All Indoor Sports available. Gaming Machines Live Music Saturday nights. Wheelchair available
Sat-Sun 10.30 am
When in Napier or Hastings visit us, we are only 8 minutes from either city. Motel accommodation next door with discounts available
All Visitors Assured of a Warm & Sincere Welcome
Ashburton Where the North meets the South
GREYMOUTH RSA CLUB
OPEN 7 DAYS
LEVIN RSA
Open for ALl generations Club open:
Fri/Sat: 11am till late Sun 12am–7pm
Mon to Thur and Sat: 10.30am -10pm Fri: 10.30am - 11.00pm Sun: 10.30am - 6.00pm
FEATURES Pool, Darts, Big Screen, EFTPOS, Courtesy
Lunch 12.00 - 2.00pm Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sun Dinner Wed-Sat 5.00pm - 8.30pm
Coach,Off Sales, Gaming, SKY TV, Live Entertainment, Karaoke, Jukebox, Air conditioning - Conference room for hire, Power plugs for motorhomes Restaurant available Thur – Sat for Lunch & Dinner ALL RSA & CHARTERED CLUB MEMBERS WELCOME
Hours Mon - Tues: 11am-7pm. Wed Thurs Fri: 11am-10pm. Sat: 11am-12pm. Sun: 11am- 5pm Mon+Wed Lunch noon. Bistro Thurs, Fri, Sat 5.30-8pm
1 Easton Street. Ph: 06 363 7670 Fax: 06 363 6838 Email: foxtonrsa@xtra.co.nz www.foxtonrsa.co.nz CLUB HOURS
12 Cox Street
Clubrooms Open Mon-Fri 8.30 am
FOXTON RSA INC.
Mon: 2pm–7pm Tues: Midday-7pm Wed: 11am–9.30pm Thur: 11am-10.00pm
ASHBURTON RSA [INC]
Full Platter Bistro:
Features: *ATM * Eft-pos * Modern dual Jackpot 18 Gaming Machines * 8-Ball * Snooker * Darts * Sky TV * Library * Live Entertainment FUNCTION FACILITIES AVAILABLE FOR HIRE
RSA - That’s the Spirit
181 Tainui Street Facilities include a family bar, pool table, dart boards & gaming machines. Housie is played every Monday at 7.30pm. Raffles Tuesday & Friday. We extend to all members a cordial invitation to visit our clubrooms situated on the main highway 5 minutes from the town centre and motels. HOURS: Mon - Sun open from 12pm. Lunch time Courtesy Coach Available Fridays
Call and make some West Coast friends
32 Bristol Street, Levin (next to KFC) P: 368 3475 E: rsalevin@paradise.net.nz www.levinrsa.org.nz
TAWA RSA 89 Oxford St. Ph: 232 5788
A warm welcome is extended to all RSA & Chartered Club visitors We are open:
Mon to Wed & Sun 4- 7pm Thurs & Sat 4 -8pm. Fri 4 -10pm Meals Friday 6.30 - 8.00pm
Milton Bruce RSA
Pool Darts Sky TV
31 Union Street, Milton Ph: 03 417 8927
Open daily from 5.00pm *All Welcome*
PORIRUA RSA (Inc) marlborough - nelson west coast canterbury otago - southland
RESTAURANT HOURS Thurs, Fri & Sat. Dinners 5.30 - 9.30pm
NEW, RETURNED & SERVICE MEMBERS MOST WELCOME
RANGIORA RSA CLUB (Inc) 82 Victoria Street Ph: 03 313 7123
Lower Hutt Memorial www.lowerhuttrsa.org.nz
Restaurant: Lunch Wed, Thurs, Fri. Dinner Thurs, Fri, Sat & Sun. Courtesy Van Available Thurs, Fri, & Sat nights
A warm welcome is extended to all RSA members, families and friends
Kensington Restaurant Open Upstairs Wednesday - Sunday from 5:30pm
Live Band Friday and Saturday 8.00pm and Sundays 3.00pm 3 Bars, Garden Bar, Large TV Screens, Sky Sport, TAB, Internet, Library, Gaming Room, Conference Facilities.
47 Udy Street, Petone. Ph 568 5404 Members, Guests and Affiliated members welcome
BULLS
SH1 Bulls Ph 06 322 0875
Hours Mon, Tues & Sun:11am -8pm Wed -Sat:11am -10pm When passing through Bulls call at our clubrooms, enjoy our hospitality and have a friendly chat.
Visitors Made Welcome
Hours: Tues - Thurs 11am -10pm. Fri 11am - Late. Sat 3pm - Late. Sun 11am - 6pm. Meals: Lunch Tues - Fri & Sun 12 - 1.30pm. Dinner Fri, Sat 6pm to 8pm Breakfast Sunday 9am-11am
inVeRCaRgiLL WoRKingMen’s CLuB inC. Incorporating the inVeRCaRgiLL R.s.a. 154 Esk Street, Invercargill Ph. 03 218 8693 Fax 03 218 3011 e-mail office@iwmc.co.nz Hours Mon - Wed. 11.00am - 10.00pm Thurs. 11.00am - 11.00pm Fri. 11.00am - 12 midnight Sat. 10.00am - 1.30am Sun. 12.00noon - 9.00pm Bottle Store Corinthian Restaurant open for lunch Mon - Fri 12noon - 1.30pm Dinner Thurs. - Sun. from 6.00pm Corinthian Convention Centre available for meetings, conferences or functions, large or small 24 Gaming machines - 5 snooker tables Sky TV 5 pool tables Raffles Mon. - Sat. Band on Sat. nights Off-street parking
PAPANUI RSA
CLUB night every FRIDAY 4.30 - 6.30pm in the ANZAC Lounge
Bistro Open 7 Days A Week Lunch 11.30 - 2.00pm Dinner 5:00 - 9.00pm
RIVERTON RSA 141 Palmerston Street
Tues - Thurs 3 - 10pm. Fri 3 - 11pm. Sat 3pm - 11pm When travelling near Western Southland, call in at our clubrooms where you will receive a friendly welcome and hospitality
MOSGIEL
MEMORIAL RSA
6 Church St (Opens: 11 am) Lunches 7 days from 12noon Dinner Wed - Sat from 5.30pm
When travelling near Dunedin call at our clubrooms in Mosgiel. You will be given a warm welcome and you may meet some old friends.
NELSON RSA (Inc)
168 Tahunanui Drive, Nelson. Phone 03 548 6815.
Open from 11.00 am Monday – Saturday; 11.30 am Sunday Tribute: 6.00 pm Wednesdays Lunch 11.00 am – 2.00 pm; Dinner 5.30 – 8.30 pm
ALL VISITORS WELCOME
VISITORS WELCOME
OPEN SEVEN DAYS
Mon 11am - 7pm. Tues 11am - 7pm. Wed 11am - 8pm. Thurs 11am - 11pm. Fri 11am - 12pm. Sat 10am - 12pm. Sun 10am - 9pm
Memorial RSA Inc
12 Civic Ave Ph: 03 208 6218 Fax: 03 208 6220 Email: GoreRSA@xtra.co.nz Clubrooms Open 10.30 am 7 days a week Bar Hours Mon - Fri 10.30 am - 11 pm Sat 10.30 am - 1 am Sun 10.30 am - 9.30 pm Family Bar The Gore RSA Bistro Wed - Fri 12-2 pm. Tues - Sun 5.30 pm - 8 pm Private functions by arrangement * 5 F/size Snooker Tables * 18 Gaming Machines * Big Screen Sky TV * TAB Live entertainment each month. Tea coffee in our smoke free lounge. Off street parking for visitors. Raffles: Thurs & Fri. Flag 500 Wed 7 pm during winter
21 Waiti Rd Timaru Ph: 03 688 4123
Music Every Saturday Housie Tuesday Nights
5 -7 McKillop St, Tel: 04 237 7695 Fax 04 238 2343
* Sky Tv * TAB * Gaming Room * Pool * Darts * Indoor Bowls * EFTPOS * Wine Club * Kapa Haka BAR HOURS
TIMARU
Gore District
Ph: 03 352 9770 55 Bellvue Ave Papanui Rd & 1 Harewood Rd
Access also from
Visiting Christchurch
Try our hospitality in the heart of Papanui. Adjacent to major civic amenities incl. shopping mall,motels & hotels
Club Hours
Mon -Tues: 11am -9pm. Wed-Thurs: 11am-10pm. Fri- Sat: 11am- 11pm. Sun: 11am- 8pm
Bistro Meals
Lunch: 7 days 12 - 2 pm Dinner: 7 days 5pm onwards
Facilities
Eftpos, Sky TV, Snooker Billiards, Pool, Bowls, Cards, Darts, Gaming Machines, Library, Live Entertainment, Off Street Parking. Power Point for Campervans
Welcome
Chartered Club 66 Wellington St
Picton
RSA & Club
Full Trading Hours. Pool & Snooker Tables. Games Machines. Bistro Meals: Open 7 Days
Everybody Welcome
Marlborough RSA 42 Alfred Street Blenheim (In Clubs Marlborough Complex)
We extend a cordial invitation to all visiting members to visit our Clubrooms Open 7 Days from 9.00, Restaurant meals - 7 Days. Gaming, Pool, Snooker, Sky TV.
RICHMOND/WAIMEA R.S.A. INC. P.0. Box 3034 Richmond 7050.
CHARTERED CLUB
35 Centennial Ave. Alexandra
Alexandra Clyde RSA
Operating from Club Waimea Premises Lower Queen Street, Richmond. Phone 03 543 9179. Open from 11.00am till late. Club Waimea facilities including Caravan Park facilities which are available to all R.S.A. Members. Meals are available Wednesday - Sunday 11.30am Onwards
PO Box 10 Ph: 03 448 8090 Fax: 03 448 8023 Bar Hours Mon-Sat: 11am-Late Sun: 4.30 9pm Bistro Hours Thurs: 6.30-8.30pm. Fri: 6-9pm Sun: 6-8pm Snack Bar open all hours
Catering a Specialty Gaming Machines, Sky Tv,Snooker, Pool Darts,Bowls
Visitors Welcome
motueka
memorial rsa (inc) 49 High Street
www.motuekarsa.co.nz
Open 7 Days Mon-Fri 4pm. Sat 11am. Sun 2pm Restaurant & Dining Room Tues, Thurs - Sun
5.30pm - 8.30pm. Fri & Sat Lunch: 12 noon - 1.00 pm rsa - clubs nz members most welcome
36
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
Travel Australia 1 & 2 bedroom apartments and 3 bedroom sub-penthouses. All fully self-contained apartments with private spa baths. Expansive sea views opposite patrolled beach. Resort facilities – indoor heated pool, steam room, outdoor pool, tennis court, gym, games room. 271 Elizabeth Street, Sydney + 61 2 9264 6001
DIRECT BOOKING ONLINE NOW AVAILABLE Visit: www.hydeparkinn.com.au
The Hyde Park Inn offers friendly, personalised service and spectacular views across Hyde Park. Central CBD location, just minutes to shopping, theatres, Central Station, The Opera House, Darling Harbour and Kings Cross. Our features include: • Self catering facilities • Complimentary continental breakfast • Air-conditioning • Balcony to Deluxe Rooms • Large family rooms and apartments • Free car parking • Free in-house movie channels • Guest laundry • DVD players to all rooms • In-room Broadband Access • Flat Screen LCD televisions
Fabulous heated indoor pool renovations now completed, perfect for winter months. Call or email for specials. 238 The Esplanade Burleigh Heads QLD 4220 Ph. 00 617 5535 8866 Fax. 00 617 5535 8523 Email. mail@burleighsurf.com.au
w w w.burleighsur f.com.au
Owned by RSL NSW Branch
Anyone for a Gold Coast Getaway??
• Special rates for RSA Members • Special long term rates available
Welcome to Palazzo Colonnades boutique, high-rise holiday accommodation apartments in Surfers Paradise....
Eligible RSA members can join a NSW RSL Sub Branch for even better rates.
• Fully self contained, air conditioned one bedroom and two bedroom apartments • Heated swimming pool, spa, sauna, gymnasium and BBQ facilities
HOT DEAL!
• Under cover, fully secured free parking
Stay 5 Pay 4 from AUS $608.00*
• Flat screen televisions and AUSTAR cable television free of charge • In room wireless internet broadband service • Extensive choice of restaurants within minutes walking distance
TO BOOK PHONE +61 7 5538 4555
• 1.5km from Gold Coast Exhibition and Convention Centre
Gemini Court - Queensland The best views on the coast
• 150 metres to the beach and 6-8 minutes leisurely stroll to Cavill Avenue
Address: 2988 - 2994 Surfers Paradise Blvd, Surfers Paradise. 4217 Telephone: +61 7 5538 4555 Email: info@palazzocolonnades.com.au
FOR THE BEST RATES BOOK DIRECT AT OUR NEW WEBSITE: www.palazzocolonnades.com.au * Valid for sale until 20/09/13. Block out dates apply.
Riviere on Golden Beach, Caloundra, Queensland
Email: info@riviere.com.au web: www.riviere.com.au
Phone: 0061 75492 3200
Spectacular ocean & beach views Heated pool, spa, sauna Fully self contained 1 & 2 bedroom apartments Full tennis court - Metres to the beach & shops Next to Burleigh Heads National Park
Fully self contained boutique apartments - 4 star self rating, all with lift access, airconditioning & ocean views. Direct access to beach 50 meters. Heated pool and spa, BBQ area. Transport arranged from Brisbane or Coolangatta Airports. Easy walk to heart of Surfers or Broadbeach
Book direct and get great deals from friendly kiwis,
Book Now - Come for a sunny holiday
Rates from A$129 p.n. Visit: geminicourt.com.au
Surfers Paradise
CHECK OUT OUR WINTER SPECIALS STAY 9 and PAY FOR 7
Ph: 00617 5526 7588, Or email: info@emeraldsands.com.au Or visit: www.emeraldsands.com.au
E-mail:info@geminicourt.com.au
Tele:0061 7 5576 0300
SPACIOUS HOLIDAY HOLIDAY APARTMENTS APARTMENTS SPACIOUS
Book 4 weeks or more receive 20% discount
Affordable Beach Front Spacious Apartments The heart of the Sunshine Coast Qld.
SAILPORT
HEALTHY VACATIONS • www.sundeck.com.au Phone: 00617 5409 7555 Email: holiday@sundeck.com.au Lifts, Heated Pool, Spa & Massage Treatments
M O O LO O L A B A A PA R T M E N T S
Overlooking Mooloolaba Wharf and Marina. 100 metres to Surf Club and safe patrolled Beach. Great rates, modern 4 star luxury 1,2 & 3 bedrooms. Spacious, fully self contained & air conditioned. Central to all the Sunshine Coast attractions. Special - Stay 7 Pay 5 Feb, May - July, November
Telephone: 00617 5444 1844 email: reception@sailport.com.au.
Cnr River Esplanade & Hancock St, Mooloolaba, Queensland Australia.
w w w. s a i l p o r t . c o m . a u
MALIBU MOOLOOLABA
• Ocean Views from all Apartments • 2 Bedroom / 2 bathroom air conditioned • Heated lap pool & spa • Lift access to all 10 floors • Secure U/C Parking • Central to cafes, restaurants, shops, bars & clubs • TV / DVD FREE Austar • 2 Rooftop apartments (Private BBQ) - One with spa SPECIAL DISCOUNT IF YOU MENTION THIS ADVERT 81 The Esplanade Mooloolaba 4557 Ph: 00617 5444 1133 Fax: 00617 5444 1280 E: info@mailibu.com.au www.malibu.com.au
Travel New Zealand BAY OF ISLANDS PAIHIA CENTRAL Self contained holiday units. Close to shops and ex-servicemen’s club and all amenities, but in quiet bush setting. From $350 weekly. Phone Joan on 09 426 5656 or email hiview@xtra.co.nz www.hiview.co.nz
HAMILTON Gardena Court Motel. We are close to all clubs, amenities, RSA members special from $99 single/Dble includes continental breakfast for 2 each morning subject to availability. We Guarantee value for money. Hosts: Alan & Dale Padgett. 257 Ulster St. Ph 07 838 1769. Email: stay@gardena.co.nz. Web: www.gardena.co.nz Reservations: 0800 STAY GARDENA (0800 782 942)
37
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
ACAPULCO MOTOR INN
Medals
TAUPO
Welcomes RSA members Off season discounts may apply 20 ground floor units 10% Discount to all members 19 Rifle Range Road www.acapulcotaupo.co.nz
Phone 0800 378 7174 NAPIER. Colonial Lodge Motel. Next door to Taradale RSA. 17 g/f fully s/c units serviced daily. Sky digital, heated swimming & private spa pools, games room, bbq, large garden grounds. Qualmark 4 Star Plus.Tariff $110 - $150 for 1-2 persons. RSA member discount. Reservations 0800 68 44 77. Ph/Fax 06 844 7788. Your hosts Sarah & Mark Johnson. stay@colonialmotel.co.nz www.colonialmotel.co.nz
English Tie & Medal Co Medals mounted or supplied. * Full size or miniature Replica Medal groups for family members. * Blazer Badges and Framed Medal Displays. * Commemorative medals, incl. CMT.
MEDAL MOUNTING COURT STYLE
We do not deal or trade original medals
P. 09 838 4828 F. 09 838 4850 W. www.medals.co.nz 6 Central Park Drive, Henderson, Auckland 0610
MEDALS MOUNTED Court or Swing style. Professional quality guaranteed work. Reasonable prices. Medals also framed for family history displays, museum quality work. Medals & military souvenirs purchased for my own collection especially gallantry awards eg. DFC, MC, MM etc. German & Allied hats, helmets uniforms, RNZAF RAF pilots wings & boots also sought. Ph: Ian Hamilton 09 266 5783
Any changes to Club Adverts or Classified Adverts
SWING STYLE
Medals professionally mounted court or swing style. $15 per medal. Courier return $6.10 . No hidden costs. Damage free mounting. New ribbon. Fully insured. Framing service. Medal cases, replicas and miniatures stocked. Free NZDSM or NZOSM lapel pin with each mounting order. NZ wide mail order service or by appointment. Turnaround is usually 7 days.
A G Bairstow NZ Medals Ltd
PO Box 128-134, Remuera, Auckland 1541 Ph : 09 571 2074 aubreyb@clear.net.nz
www.nzmedals.com
ALSO BUYING MEDALS, DIARIES AND MILITARY ITEMS
PLEASE CONTACT
DAVE McKEE Ph: 03 983 5518 Fax: 03 983 5552 E: davem@waterfordpress.co.nz
email: admin@tgarsa.co.nz
RUSSELL. F/furn 2 bdrm apartment. Sleeps 4 available all year. 2 adults $400 p week or $80 p night, $15 pn extra person. Ph: 09 426 9747 Fax: 09 426 9780 Email: donandmyra@xtra.co.nz WANGANUI. Bignell St Motel, Quiet Warm Friendly, Comfortable, Pets by arrangement $55 single + $15pp extra. Phone Now 0800 244 635 WELLINGTON Harbour City Motor Inn Cnr Victoria & Webb Str 0800 33 24 68 e: harbourcitymotorinn@ xtra.co.nz, www.harbourcitymotorinn.co.nz. Located in central city with studios, one bedroom unit and 3-bedroom apartment. Close to airport & ferry. Special RSA rates. Host Dolly.
WHAKATANE Bay Hotel Units 90 McAllister Street. Very handy to RSA. Discount for RSA members. Friendly service, courtesy pickup, Pets very welcome. Your hosts Betty & Willy Arends. Ph 07 308 6788 Fax 07 308 6749
Tours FULLY ESCORTED TOURS FOR SENIOR CITIZENS Our 2013 programe includes: NZ: High Country Spectacular, Pacific Coast, Winterless North, Hawkes Bay Historic Homes, Top of the South, South of the South, Chatham Islands, Taranaki Rhodo Fest, Kapiti Coast, Taipa Bay for Christmas. AUSTRALIA: Tasmania, Lake Eyre & Outback, Wet Season Spectacular (from Darwin), Melbourne, Adelaide and the Murray River, Cape York, Gold Coast Stay Put, Red Centre, North West Safari, Western Australian Wanderer, Waltzing the Matilda. PACIFIC: Norfolk Island, Samoa
Special Feature Display section for school children “My Relative went to War” Encourage your grandchildren to Contact us to book a display space
Arms and Militaria sales tables and displays Sat 27 July 2013, 9-5pm, Public Admission $10.00, free entry for WW2 veterans. Club Stand, Riccarton Park Function Centre, Christchurch
Presented by Mainland Arms & Militaria Shows Ltd For information Phone: 0274 35 1940 E: graeme.woodend@xtra.co.nz W: www.gunshows.co.nz
MEDAL MOUNTING
Court or Swing Style, Full Size & Miniature medals,Ribbon Bars, Extra sets of medals for family, Framed Family Groups. Supplier of replica WW2 wings and brevet. 26 Years Experience. Contact: Tony Prowse, 6 Chilton Dr, Paraparaumu, Kapiti Coast Ph. 04 2973232. Email: tsprowse@xtra.co.nz
Wanted to Buy JAPANESE SWORDS WANTED Old Daggers and Fittings.
Antique Chinese and Asian Bronzes. All conditions considered.
For a free colour brochure contact Scottsdale Tours FREE phone 0800 66 44 14 www.scottsdaletours.co.nz
VIETNAM TOURS 20 Days ex Auck, Wgtn, Chch. From $6495 pp share twin. Special conditions apply. Kiwi Vietnam Tours PO Box 123 Rongotea Ph 06 324 8444, info@kiwivietnamtours.co.nz www.kiwivietnamtours.co.nz
Notices GUN SHOW
MEDAL MOUNTING, MILITARY HISTORY & GENEALOGY RESEARCH. Orders, decorations & medals (full size & miniatures) court mounted for day, evening wear, and for family history displays. Medals mounted with respect for over 40 years with no modifications to medals or clasps. Contact Medal Mounting Wellington, H.E. Chamberlain, Ph: 04 293 3504. 470 Te Moana Rd. Waikanae. Email: clas.chamberlain@xtra.co.nz.
35mm Slide Restoration I can recover the original images from your old 35mm slides that are stored away, and are deteriorating. The recovered images are then enhanced, digitised, and placed on a CD or memory stick. For more information: rex@anygood.info
Specialist Buyer - TOP PRICES Contact: Mr Jordan Phone: (07) 576 7944 • Mobile: 021 963 991 Email: jamesandmargie@xtra.co.nz
Any changes to Club Adverts or Classified Adverts PLEASE CONTACT
DAVE McKEE Ph: 03 983 5518 | Fax: 03 983 5552 E: davem@waterfordpress.co.nz
38
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
What’s New
KIWIS WON THE WAR, RESEARCHERS REVEAL A courageous action by 10,000 New Zealand soldiers in 1918 won World War 1 for the Allies, according to research by Kiwi historians. The heroic way in which this New Zealand division rebuffed the final German assault on Allied troops in late March/early April 1918 helped change the course of the war, says Massey University’s professor of war studies, Glyn Harper. Harper, who wrote about the Second Battle of the Somme in his book, Spring Offensive, recounts how Germany launched a huge and successful attack to break open the British and French lines and win the war before the Americans entered the conflict. “In attempting to split the alliance between Britain and France and isolate both armies, they pushed the British back 40 miles. The New Zealand division of 10,000 men, which was recuperating following Passchendaele, was rushed down from Flanders to the stem the retreat. “The New Zealanders plugged a five-mile gap in France between Hebuterne and Hamel, and held the offensive. This was a dire moment, the closest the Allies came to losing the war. If the New Zealand soldiers hadn’t secured the position and then, with the assistance of Australian and British troops, pushed the enemy back, the Germans would have won the war.” The heroism and sacrifice of the New Zealand division will be included in a volume in which historian Ian McGibbon looks at the Western Front as part of the first definitive history of
Capturing the complete history of NZ’s involvement in this war is critical to our future understanding of ourselves as a nation. We need to record this great history for our children and our children’s children.
Glyn Harper...publication of 13 volumes over next five years will make amends for silence and close serious gaps in New Zealand historiography.
New Zealand and the World War 1. The project is being co-ordinated by Harper as part of The Centenary History Programme to commemorate the 100th anniversary of World War 1 in 2014. The project is led by Massey University in conjunction with the Ministry for Culture and
Heritage, the New Zealand Defence Force and the RNZRSA. While the focus for most New Zealanders is Gallipoli, the bulk of New Zealand’s forces served on the Western Front and in the Sinai/ Palestine campaign. These campaigns, which contributed to a significant loss of life – nearly 60,000 soldiers wounded and 18,500 dead – have never officially been told. Harper says the publication of 13 volumes over the next five years provides an opportunity to make amends for this silence and close serious gaps in the New Zealand historiography that are most unlikely to be published otherwise. Unlike Australia, where a 12-volume official history was published between 1921 and 1943, New Zealand produced no readable history of its involvement in World War 1. And most of the soldiers who returned “locked their experiences away and didn’t want to talk about it”, says Harper. “Capturing the complete history of New
Zealand’s involvement in this war for generations of New Zealanders is critical to our future understanding of ourselves as a nation. We need to officially record this great history for our children and our children’s children. New Zealanders today need to understand the significance of what their forbears did to protect and shape their nation. We have a duty to document the full truth and humanity of this most terrible of wars.” Harper started on the project 18 months ago. The first volume, New Zealand and the First World War, by Ministry of Culture and Heritage historian Damien Fenton, will be completed by the end of this year; the other 12 volumes will become progressively available over the next five years. Harper, who is writing Johnny New Zealand – the NZ Soldier at War 1914-1918, as his contribution, will travel with other military historians on commemorative tours to Gallipoli and the Western Front to mark the centenary of the war.
Your legacy can help thousands of people For over 125 years The Salvation Army has been supporting New Zealanders in need and helping build better communities for us to live in. We want to continue doing this for many years to come … but we can’t do it alone. For more information or to receive our free books, phone 0800 53 00 00 or write to: Director Wills & Bequests, PO Box 27001, Marion Square, Wellington 6141 or visit
www.salvationarmy.org.nz
IF YOU HAVE THE WILL WE HAVE THE WAY Wills & Bequests
YOUR WILL Wills & Bequests
Te Ope Whakāora
Te Ope Whakāora
Te Ope Whakāora
What’s New 39
RSA REVIEW • AUTUMN 2013
‘Fit to Fight’ well and truly fit to read
The old-timers get a big run at the Goodwood Revival motorsport and aviation event in England.
Web response now a tour
Kevin and Melanie Salisbury have merged his Railway Museum, RAF Scampton, Bletchley lifelong absorption with aviation and history Park and Hampton Court Palace. with her travel experience into specialist United “Being able to share these experiences and Kingdom tours based around cars, and planes, having guests say ‘Thank you so much for and trains. bringing us here’ or ‘This trip was one of the The idea was born when Travel Managers highlights of my life’ makes it incredible for us Group Ltd (formerly Frontier Travel Ltd), where as tour hosts,” says Melanie Salisbury. Melanie works as an independent travel broker, The Salisburys’ tour groups are usually a blend launched a new website and asked for innova- of couples and single men: “As a husband and tive travel ideas. wife team, we are able to look after everyone. Kevin’s working life has been in the motor Sometimes the women will even venture off with industry (he was with Rolls Royce before they me to do something a little different. moved to New Zealand eight years ago, but his “‘Being part of a group means you are never passions are aviation and modelling. alone, you have hassle-free travel, and at the They escorted their first Planes Trains & Autos end of the day you can sit down over dinner or tour to the United Kingdom in 2009, and have a drink and share your experiences of the day. been back every year with what has become Your hosts are with you almost 24/7.” known as “The South” tour where they shared The tour has a flexible return date. If you want their home counties and places they know so well. to stay on in Europe, your flights home and Their next tour – “Bomber County”which onward arrangements can be changed to suit. leaves Auckland for the UK on August 29 – will be a little different. “We had a lot of past guests • Information/bookings: Melanie Salisbury - 07 wanting to join us again, so we have introduced 5788759; melanie@travelmanagers.co.nz. a new tour,” says Melanie. They describe ‘Bomber County’ as a leisurely, 20-day, smallgroup tour. The tour, which will leave Auckland on August 29, will take in two air shows (the Shuttleworth Air Display and the Duxford Airshow), and the Goodwood Revival, a historic motorsport and aviation event. Seeing the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight , with a Lancaster, Spitfire and Hurricane flying together, is a highlight for many. And there’s the chance to taxi in the Lancaster, Just Jane. Other A Lancaster, a Hurricane PZ865 and a Spitfire AB910 share attractions include the National the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight over England.
LET US TAKE YOU ON AN AMAZING JOURNEY...
UK AIRSHOW TOURS
Bomber County Departing 29th August, 2013
Leisurely 20 day tour escorted from Auckland with a unique itinerary and many inclusions. Featuring: › The Shuttleworth Air Display › The Duxford Airshow › Goodwood Revival Also includes: › RAF Museum Cosford › Yorkshire Air Museum › National Rail Museum › RAF Scampton
› Lincs Aviation Museum › BBMF Visitor Centre › RAF Waddington › Newark Air Museum
› Imperial War Museum › Watts Chapel › Hampton Court Palace
Rare opportunity for the Lancaster bomber "Just Jane" VIP Taxi Ride (additional cost)
$9150 per person twin share / $1500 single supplement Call for details & itinerary Melanie, Travel Managers Ph: (07) 578 8759 | Email: melanie@travelmanagers.co.nz www.aviationtoursnz.com Registered office Level 16, 135 Albert St, Auckland
Peter Cooke has pulled off a classy military manoeuvre with his book on Compulsory Military Training and National Service. He has produced a readable yarn, while retaining historical accuracy and sufficient detail. Given the number of CMT and NS ‘veterans’ floating around, Fit to Fight was almost guaranteed a receptive market. But military historian Cooke has not taken anything for granted. He has authored a product that’s full of hard information, yet doesn’t get bogged down in it; that has plenty of human interest, colour and anecdote, yet doesn’t stray from its historical intent. It’s liberally laced with photos (more than 600), lists and data (not foolproof in completeness, but still valuable).
Just one gripe. It’s great – and crucial to the book – that so many ‘old soldiers’ (more than 830 in all, according to publisher David Bateman Ltd) have contributed their CMT/NS stories and thoughts. But a number of these longer pieces descend into ramble and tedium, and would have benefited from harsh editing. At a cent under $75, Fit to Fight is not a cheapie. But it’s 624 decent-quality pages bound into a hard cover – an attractive product that will do the job very nicely as a birthday, Christmas, or any other sort of present. As an old ‘tankee’who converted to APCs of the mid tom late ‘60s, I found plenty to take my fancy. What’s more, it’s a great title. – Dion Crooks
The Gallipoli centennial is tending to dominate New Zealand and Australian thinking, but 2015 is also a significant anniversary for Vietnam veterans. It will be 50 years since the first New Zealand and Australian combat troops were sent to Vietnam (New Zealand had had engineers and a medical team, and Australia advisers, in Vietnam since 1962). Australia deployed infantry in 1965, and New Zealand an artillery battery in 1965 and infantry in 1966. New Zealand withdrew its combatants in 1972 and Australia in 1973. A group of Australian vets says there is a synergy between the original Anzacs and the Vietnam Veterans – many of the VVs’ grandfathers fought at Gallipoli. The group has devised a Sons of Anzacs
Vietnam memorial tour to mark the 50 years. Mat McLachlan, who specialises in organising battlefield tours, and Lt Col Gary McKay (rtd), an author and historian on Vietnam, will lead the trip, which will include visits to the sites of Australia’s major engagements. A significant memorial service is planned at Long Tan Cross to honour the generations who have died in uniform for Australia’s army, navy and air force. Additional tours can be arranged in Vietnam. The tour committee is: Gary, McKay, Gary Phillips, Geoff Lowe,Mat McLachlan. The patron is MajGen David McLachlan (rtd).
Vietnam vets plan to return in 2015
• Information: http://battlefields.com.au/ index/php/tours/69.
Chunuk Bair achievement to be celebrated The recently formed 7th Wellington and Hawke’s Bay Regimental Association has registered an activity to commemorate a significant occasion during the World War 1 commemoration activities. The 100th anniversary of Col William Malone and the Wellington Regiment gaining Chunuk Bair on the Gallipoli Peninsula will be celebrated on August 8, 2015 with a service in Clive Square Napier, followed by a “Beat Retreat” at the Napier Sound Shell and a regimental function at the Coote Road Army Hall. A major regimental reunion is being planned to coincide with the Chunuk Bair commemoration. This will be a splendid occasion, says Andy
Kells, who has been co-opted onto the association to assist with developing its strength to preserve its colourful history. He encourages all current and former Regular and Territorial force serving members to join the database to help communication. Access the database at http://www.7wnhbregtassn.co.nz/. Membership is open to anyone who has served in 7WnHB, or its predecessors, the Hawke’s Bay and Wellington regiments. Membership allows you to keep in touch with those you served with, attend functions and reunions, support those currently in the unit, and generally keep the unit’s history and traditions alive.
Discover Australia by Rail Two legendary journeys
The Indian Pacific Perth – Sydney or Sydney – Perth
20 OFF %
The Ghan
Adelaide – Darwin or Darwin – Adelaide
Gold Service * Fares Conditions apply
*20% off Gold Service Fares on The Ghan and Indian Pacific. Sale ends: 31st July 2013.
New Inclusions for 2013
Valid for travel: between 01 June – 31 October 2013. Gold Service only. All offers are subject to availability at the time of booking, so don’t delay, book now to get the best offer and make Australia your next holiday destination.
Tours
Contact your local travel agent or visit: www.railplus.co.nz email: info@railplus.co.nz Railplus on (09) 377 5415
Beverages
All refreshments including soft drinks, beers, high-quality standard wines and base spirits available throughout your journey at no additional cost. Enjoy a truly unique experience with en route Explore and Discover Stops. Experience the culture and history of destinations along your journey included in your fare.