With remembrance day celebrations taking place across the north east last Monday there were several local services.
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The Ensign received photos from Benalla Health's Morrie Evans Wing, Estia Health and from the Dookie RSL sub-branch slightly too late to include in last week's edition.
Estia held its own service for residents.
The service at Morrie Evans was hosted by Benalla RSL member, and local author, Doug Williams.
We also received the following article submitted by Dookie RSL Sub-branch member Margerate Mason.
The Dookie Remembrance Day service was attended by more than 50 lcoal people including the students of Dookie Primary School who walked to the memorial with their principal Cindy Latessa.
Dookie RSL sub-branch secretary Ron Mason emcee'd the service, welcoming everyone in attendance before inviting Suzie Laws to lead the recital of the Lord’s Prayer.
Dookie school captains, Mia Ludeman and Johan Tremper and vice-captains, Brianna Shields and Leo McNeill, each read a verse of the poem Poppies for Remembrance, which had been chosen by the students.
Guest speaker, Dookie's Dianne Feldtmann, spoke about a WWI commemorative land art installation in Belgium called Coming World Remember Me.
The exhibition, installed on 3 ha of former no-man’s land, comprised 600 000 small statues, each representing a victim of the war in Belgium.
The 15 cm high figures were individually hand-made by people from all around the world who chose to be involved.
At the conclusion of the exhibition Dianne said the makers were free to come to the site and collect the statues.
Dianne came to know one of the statue makers, Ralph Surry from the UK, when she was doing research for the book Remembering the Dookie Fallen, which she wrote with Helen Rankin from Violet Town.
Ralph is interested in WWI history and, having formed a link to Dookie, has sent some of the figures to Dianne to be placed locally.
Wreaths were laid on behalf of the Dookie RSL Sub-branch, the Women’s Auxiliary, Goulburn Valley Vietnam Veterans Association and by the Primary School.
After the recital of the Ode, the Last Post was played and a minute's silence observed.
This was ended by the playing of the Rouse and the singing of the National Anthem.
On behalf of the Dookie RSL sub-branch, Ron then thanked John Milligan for supplying and operating the sound system, and concluded by thanking everyone for attending, particularly mentioning the school children’s participation.