Official Magazine of WODEN VALLEY SUB-BRANCH R.S.L. The SERVICEMAN First Published in January 1962 CHRISTMAS EDITION NOVEMBER 2018 Honour their Spirit Handcrafted Poppy display at the AWM representing the 62,000 lives lost during World War I. 1 CONTENTS Office Bearers –– 2018-2019 Page 3 From the Editor’s desk Page 4 President’s Message Page 5 Vietnam Citation for Bravery Page 7 Honour their Spirit Page 9 Vale Lt Cdr J.J. Ravenscroft Page 10 Women in War Page 11 Recollections of Ethel Muller Page 12 . “Lest We Forget” and Last Post Page 14 Inside the Rock of Gibraltar Page 15 Invictus Page 17 Poppy Appeal and Office Hours 2018-2019 Page 18 Presentation of Meritorious Service Medal Page 19 Australian Jewish War Memorial Page 20 The Eddison Day Club Page 21 VLO Carmen Webb Farewell Page 23 HMAS Harman speech by Pauline Gribble Page 24 Memorial service HMAS Harman Page 26 OGM Dinner - 30th October Page 27 Jean McAlister - Working for the General Page 28 You too can defeat RDS Page 31 With friends like that ..... ? Page 32 Horrie - The Wog Dog Page 33 Entertainment - Les Cook Page 34 Wings and Missing - Helen Wilson AM Page 35 ADVERTISERS Sub-Branch Christmas Party Page 18 Grantley Perry & Sons Page 22 Canberra Southern Cross Club Page 30 Sub-Branch Services Page 36 Notice Unless specifically stated otherwise, the experiences and opinions expressed in any article are those of the author and do not represent the official position of, or endorsement by the RSL, or by The Serviceman as a journal. No responsibility is accepted by the RSL, the editor, or the publishers and printers, for the accuracy of information contained in the journal. The RSL is not liable for inaccuracy in any advertisement and does not accept responsibility for any claims made by advertisers. Any material considered misleading or inappropriate will be withheld at editorial discretion. 2 The SERVICEMAN OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE WODEN VALLEY RSL SUB-BRANCH (INC) RETURNED & SERVICES LEAGUE OF AUSTRALIA Editor: Printed inhouse Bob Cremer in the Sub-Branch 14/27 Mulley Street, office Holder ACT 2611 ISSN 1325-4588(Print) ISSN 2207-9815(Online) Vol 53 NOVEMBER 2018 No 3 OFFICE BEARERS 2018-19 Patron His Excellency Mr Chris Seed, New Zealand High Commissioner to Australia President Jim Gilchrist Deputy President Brooke Thorpe Immediate Past President Peter McFetters (formerly Peter Collas) Vice President Neil Horn, Peter Eveille Secretary: Greg Kennett Treasurer: Jan Properjohn Assistant Secretary: Chris Hammond Assistant Treasurer: Alex Meiliunus Board Members Peter Dinham, Anthony John, Alex Meiliunas Finance Committee Neil Horn, Peter Dinham, Ken Neil Office Manager: Joyce O’Brien Chaplain: Reverend Mick O’Donnell Entitlements & Advocacy Administrator: Andrew Properjohn Community Support Co-ordinator: Florence Sofield Volunteer Coordinator: Rani Kalimeris Receptionists: Lynnda Liversey, Alex Solecka The Sub-Branch meets on the last Tuesday of each month except April and December at the Canberra Southern Cross Club, Corinna Street, Phillip at 7.00PM. Membership Subscription is due on 1st January annually and should be posted to Grant Cameron Community Centre, 14/27 Mulley St, Holder ACT 2611. The Sub-Branch phone number and for ‘The Serviceman’ [02] 6285 1931. Email: [email protected] Web: www.rslwoden.org.au E&A: [email protected] Welfare: [email protected] Office Hours: Monday to Friday 0900-1500 3 FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK Bob Cremer Honour their Spirit and Supreme Sacrifice. The poppy display at the Australian War Memorial on this the 100th Anniversary of WWI, it is a very poignant reminder of the tragic events of War. While we look at numbers generally, it has much more effect with a visual display of poppies each representing a life lost as a result of war; all a tragic loss of mostly young lives. Whilst he was not related at the time of his death, my Mother’s eldest brother, Arthur was killed at Mont St Quentin on 31st August, 1918, so I can claim that one of the displayed poppies is representing my uncle. A tragic loss along with all the others at the time - he was only 20 years old. It would appear that the INVICTUS GAMES were a resounding success with men and women from all of the services competing, not just for a medal but to be part of a large group of injured veterans coming together as part of their healing process. An amazing initiative by HRH Prince Harry and the team that put INVICTUS together. No doubt that it will be just as successful in the coming years in participating countries. NSW National Parks Pass - Discount for ACT Seniors Card Holders. COTA ACT has been working with NSW National Parks and have an arrangement where ACT Seniors Card holders can obtain a discount of up to 20% on annual park entrance fees. Verification of eligibility can be confirmed by contacting COTA ACT or via the Parks website: www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/passes-and-fees/annual-passes FALL IN A warm welcome is extended to the following new members. David Jenkins, Rodney Jaffray, Lindsay Naylor, Josef Simecek, Marcus Quinlivan, Neil Johnson, William Rudd, Liam O’Toole, Tracey Puxty, Alec Phillips 4 President’s Message Jim Gilchrist Once again, it’s my pleasure to note we have been constructively busy since the last edition of The Serviceman. Our staff and volun- teers continue to provide excellent support to our members and other veterans and their families in the ACT and region. We consolidated much of this work in our submission to the Veterans’ Advocacy and support service Scoping Study a few months ago. This submission summarised some of our history, noted our outline organisation and highlighted the services we provide to our members and clients. We also raised a few issues we believe will contribute to the continuing future and success of veterans’ advocacy. For those of you who would like some late-night reading, our submission is available on our website or you could ask the office staff to provide you with a copy. In thanking our people, I repeat my concerns that our success is a double-edged sword in that it is satisfying to achieve good outcomes and continue to do the right thing, but our notoriety also attracts more clients. Fortunately, we have recently attracted some volunteers to assist with various welfare tasks and to the pensions area. However, the present situation is one in which the more the merrier applies! From a service delivery perspective, the VSC continued to attract many new clients, many of whom are presenting with complex claims and appeals, and a wide range of welfare issues: these numbers are showing no signs of abating. Our program to induct and train pension officers and welfare volunteers continues to evolve, particularly as we negotiate the new ATDP system. I encourage anyone who wants to have a go, to come along and we will find you a job! While we continue to negotiate issues that affect the availability of and access to services, we have consolidated some new and useful contacts at the organisational and individual levels. These relation- ships will be critical to our continued ability to assist members and clients access essential services. The Day Club continued to support our older members and others in the community who might otherwise be socially isolated. While the club has attracted some new volunteers, it will always welcome more. Concurrently, the monthly Burrangiri lunches organised by the Welfare Team pro- vide another opportunity to engage with older members, while also promoting the relative merits of respite care, and possible moves to residential aged-care. A highlight of the general support we provide to members is recorded elsewhere in this edition. The Welfare Team escorted three of our female members to attend the Last Post Ceremony at the AWM as part of the Honouring Women commemorations. These three WWII veterans each met the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, the Director of the AWM and various other people of interest. >>> 5 At a Branch level, we continue to raise our concerns about the 2018 National ANZAC Day March and services. Although we have not yet received formal feedback, we expect that most of these issues will be addressed for 2019. Our coffee catch-ups for younger veterans are continuing each Friday, with an open invitation to all members and others to drop-in between 10:30AM and noon for coffee and good company. While attendance at these sessions varies from not very many to a few, we hit a personal best a few weeks ago when about 25 people attended. All attendees appreciated this opportunity and most have said that they will be back. These sessions are informal, they are open to anyone and they provide an excellent opportunity to welcome potential new members and other interested parties to our Sub-Branch and VSC. Having again been late in submitting this report to our Editor, I apologise to Bob for making him wait and take the opportunity to thank him for the work he does to produce this excellent publication. My tardiness also allows me to report on the October OGM Dinner, at which the Deputy President of the Repatriation Commission, Craig Orme, reflected on the importance of the ESO community as a whole and highlighted the continued relevance of volunteers who support veterans in ways and to the extent that DVA cannot do. We intend to provide a more detailed report in the next edition of The Serviceman, as his comments were very positive and reassuring. Craig did, however note a few issues that we should monitor to ensure we remain relevant and responsive to veterans of all ages, and, where appropriate, to their families.