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President's Report
The first matter
of note to take place since the last Newsletter was the polite
rejection by the Chapter of Christ Cathedral, Newcastle to our
request to place a B.C.O.F. Plaque in the Cathedral. Whilst this
may be understandable to some, their reason was that they have a
specific Museum for such military memorabilia. We shall have to
find another resting place, as we already have the Plaque.
The ANZAC Day
March was well attended, despite the intermittent light rain. About
70 veterans marched, with an additional half dozen riding in the
B.C.O.F. ‘JEEP’, including one of our newest members, ex-NZ Nurse
Lorna Blackwood. The ‘Smoko’ took place in pleasant surroundings at
the St James’ Hotel, near David Jones in Castlereagh Street, but
your Committee has accepted the view of some of those present that
we change the venue for next year. In consequence the ‘Smoko’ will
be held on the first floor of the Shark Hotel, on the corner of
Liverpool & Pitt Streets. I have been assured that there will be no
Public Holiday surcharge.
At the meeting
at Hornsby RSL Club on Tuesday 06 March, your Committee decided that
the so-called Social sub-committee of Bob Bell, Colin Robinson and
Ken Barnett should visit the RSL Club at Katoomba, to ascertain its
suitability as a venue for our next re-union. This duly took place
on Wednesday 04 June when, with the able assistance of Norm White, a
Blue Mountains resident and author of “How Bluey (Norm’s nickname)
and Friends Occupied Japan 1946-47”, we had a thorough look at the
facilities and amenities available in that renowned holiday town.
The upshot was that we decided to hold our next re-union there from
Tuesday 07 to Thursday 09 October. Please refer to p.2 of the June
Newsletter. Regrettably, so far however, only 26 members have
replied with their payment which, to say the least, is a ‘giveaway’.
The final date for payment is Friday 26 September.
Our annual
Church Service was held as usual at the Garrison Church on Sunday 03
August. It was a beautifully sunny day, and about 70 of us
comprised the majority of the congregation. Our Honorary Chaplain,
the Right Reverend Bishop Ken Short AO gave the Sermon. Afterwards
we adjourned to the Church Hall for ’Morning Tea’.
A good size
crowd attended the VP Day Commemorative Service at the Cenotaph in
Martin Place on Friday 15 August, where I laid a wreath on behalf of
the Association. Our Banner was paraded by Des Pegram and Brian
Inwood. Immediately afterwards, Vice President Bill Skues and I
took the
the ferry to
Manly to check on the Diggers on the Park, formerly the Manly
Bowling Club, as a possible venue for a re-union next year. It may
be possible to combine this re-union with the Dedication of the
B.C.O.F. emblem engraved in sandstone which has been installed in
the Memorial Walkway at North Fort. t will soon be surrounded by
the individual pavers for which 21 members have already paid.
We are hoping for a significant increase in this number in the
future. Members are invited to suggest a suitable date & month,
either in conjunction with ANZAC Day 2009, or on different
dates.
The Annual
General Meeting of the B.C.O.F. Executive Council took place in
Canberra on Wednesday 27 August, and I can report that there were
no changes to the Executive except that Jim Patterson from the
B.C.O.F. (Japan) Association of Australia INC was elected to the
vacant position of Assistant Chairman. The next AGM will be held in
Melbourne in late September 2009.
An important
agenda item was the future of the Australian Veterans And Defence
Services Council, and our membership of it, which has been under
review for the past few months. A Working Party has held two
meetings so far, and the main proposal is that member organizations
should pay a Capitation Fee of one Dollar ($1.00) per member per
annum, up to a maximum of $1,000.00, to enable the work of the
Council to continue. This would mean that individual Associations
and Sub-Branches would need to fund the increased amount, most
likely by means of a Capitation Fee of $2.00 per annum, in the case
of B.C.O.F.
The submissions
by Ex-Service Organisations regarding details of the Prime
Ministerial Advisory Council on Ex-Service Matters is still being
studied by the Minister. The B.C.O.F. Executive Council made one
through the Australian Veterans And Defence Services Council, and
another direct to the Minister. We reached our conclusions in
answer to the questions posed by the Minister and the
Department of
Veterans’ Affairs. The outcome will be of great interest, to say
the least!
The last but
most important part of the AGM was the 45 minute detailed
explanation by the Director-General of the Nature of Service Review
Group, Brigadier David Webster AM CSC, on the way his team are
tackling the thorny task of presenting our case to the Minister for
Veterans’ Affairs, and to the Cabinet. He had briefed the Minister
only the day before. We felt that our case was in excellent hands.
The Brigadier concluded by suggesting that B.C.O.F. obtain
nationwide publicity by appearing on a TV programme such as The
Morning Programme on Channel 7, which goes to air on
Mondays to
Fridays between 9 and 11 am. We shall ascertain the possibility of
this shortly.
The next
commemorative event is the ‘Battle for Australia’ Service at the
Cenotaph in Sydney on Wednesday 03 September, starting at 1100
hrs. Please make an effort to attend, and be there by 1045 hrs. The
Service for the Australian National Flag Day will be held
immediately after the ‘Battle for Australia Service’ in Martin
Place, in this case between Pitt & Castlereagh Streets.
I shall be in
London for the first two weeks of September, to give away my
daughter Elizabeth at her wedding.
Ken Barnett
Memorial Pavers for North Head Walk Way
Requests we had
received have now been sent to the firm that does the engraving.
Notification will be given in the Newsletter when they have been
installed. It has been suggested that a day be set aside to have
group viewing
B.C.O.F.
Web Page
It is expected
that the page will be up and working shortly. Denise has found a web
provider who will accommodate us for a reasonable fee. It is now
partly up and working using the same
Katoomba Reunion
To be held on
Tuesday 07 to Thursday 09 October at the Katoomba RSL Club 68
Lurline St.
The reunion
costs will be $20 for members and Associates $25 for others.
Please register
with the
Secretary Colin Robinson 11 Bellbowrie St Canton Beach NSW 2263
(Ph 02 4397 1890)
Your Committee
has secured an entertainer for the Dinner and the liquid
refreshments will be at members prices.
The itinerary is as follows:
Tues 07 Oct
Meet & Greet in the Club Lounge
Wed 08 Oct
General Meeting in the Club Lounge
1800 for
1915 Re-union Dinner in Club Auditorium
Entertainment by Vocalist/Comedienne Liz Layton
Thu 09 Oct
Disperse
This will be on
of our best don't miss out:
Book early.
The Clarendon
Guest house is next to the Club (Ph 4782 1322) speak to Nicole or
June. The tariff is $90 for Budget rooms or $130 for Deluxe all with
cooked Breakfast. (mention B.C.O.F) A discount is available if
enough stay their.
Tourist
information centre can help with alternative accommodation Ph1300
853 408
THE REFORMED MILITARY JUSTICE SYSTEM:
NO MORE COURT MARTIALS
The system of
court martials that has underpinned military discipline since the
Australian Defence force was created early in the 20th
Century has recently undergone significant changes. Those changes,
aimed at establishing an improved military justice system, a system
that enhanced both fairness and impartiality. Next the right of
service personnel to appeal a court’s decision, In addition,
removal of the unique and separate scale of punishments that may be
imposed, through the Naval justice system on those who breach the
Articles of War. These changes are important because, a fair and
open military justice system not only assists in maintaining good
order and discipline. But they also offer protection of the human
and individual rights of serving members of the defence forces.
On another
matter, one not related to the changes outlined above, is the
question of entitlement to the Gold Card for those members of the
Armed Forces who did not serve overseas during WW2, also the matter
of Gold Card entitlement for those members who served
overseas as part of the Occupation Forces in Japan. Such
recognition through granting the Gold Card is an
important factor to the peace of mind of this group of veterans.
Because of their age, granting them the Gold Card would have very
little impact on the cost of medical services. Most of these
veterans as age pensioners already have some limited, but sometimes
expensive access to medical services. By way of comparison,
consider this; Veterans of WW1 whether they served overseas or not,
received the Gold Card in 1975, which was 57 years after
WW1. Whereas’ in 2008, 63 years after WW2,
veterans
who do not have qualifying service remain unrecognised.
Des
For your Diary
Tue 07-Thu 09 Oct Re-union at Katoomba. See details below
Tue 02 Dec Christmas Luncheon at Hornsby RSL Club
Katoomba Re-union
Tue 07 Oct 16-1800 hrs Meet & Greet in Club Lounge
Wed 08 Oct 1000 hrs General Meeting in Club Auditorium
pm FREE to participate in trips/tours etc
1830 for 1915 Re-union DINNER in Club Auditorium
Miniature Medals
Thu 09 Oct Disperse
Rail Times Sydney to Katoomba & Return
Departures (Tue 07 Oct)
Arrivals Tue 07 Oct)
0955
1156
1103
1304
1203
1404
1303
1504
Departures (Thu 09 Oct)
Arrivals (Thu 09 Oct)
0826
1033
0926
1132
1026
1232
Apology
Colonel Miles Pickering 21 AAOD has contacted the editor to inform
him that the report of his death in the Vale column of the last
issue of the Newsletter was greatly exaggerated. He is in fact alive
and well, enjoys excellent health and works out in the local
gymnasium three times a week. We extend to Colonel Pickering, our
sincere apologies for any distress caused to himself, family or
friends by that report.
Vale
Winley
Max 10 Bomb Disposal
Williams T
S VX982441 L/Sgt B.C.O.F.
Wilson R
J VX504799 3rd Bn
Schodde I
M NX503356 Sgt AAOD
Rickman H
L NX501773 Gnr Fld Bty
Ridgeway E
A NX99775 168 AGT
Grant
J D WA505837 Sgt Aust Anc
Unit
Ellison
H C NX502805 Av W/S
Fallon B
NX502258 Cpl Aust Fld Amb
Dawson D W
NX500326 HQ Base Com
Clark R C
VX500459
Chalkey B
NX500459 B.C.O.F. Press-Print. Unit
Brown C R
NX503909 Mil. Dist. RR&GDD
Boddington L T
VX119787 Aust LofC Stat Dept
Bell A J NX
77687 3 Bn
Taylor John (Squizzy)
NX206670 66 Bn Band
Harry
Mathew Pres of The Re-Enactment Group
Sick Parade
Grimshaw L.
Diener N
R Bell
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