ANZAC DAY Commemoration

From Jane, Year 6 Teacher

On Wednesday the 24th, NMPS acknowledged Anzac Day with an afternoon assembly. We had special guest speak to us, the Junior Student Representative Council representatives laid a wreath made my Year 6 students and we paid our respects to fallen soldiers around the world with a minute silence.  

A Story from Bob Slater, Our Assembly Guest 

Once again Errol Street Primary School commemorated Anzac Day at an assembly after school on 24th April.

Year 6 leaders hosted the occasion, each leader sharing the honour of explaining the meaning of ANZAC and reciting the Ode of Remembrance. This was followed by an Anzac Day address, the Last Post, a one-minute silence, and Reveille to conclude.

School Principal Sally introduced this year’s speaker, Bob Slater AM, who has spoken on two previous occasions.

Bob is a retired Australian Army Brigadier (one star general) who is an engineer and served in the Vietnam war. He is the grandfather of Griff (Year 5) and Nimmy (Year 2) McArthur and former students Angus and Felix (both now at University High).

Bob spoke about the significance of the Anzac Day Dawn Service as a reminder of the sacrifice made by those killed by war, and the Anzac Day March as a means of commemorating service over self and the mateship that comes from this service to the nation. He illustrated this by referring to two families consisting of five boys who all attended Errol Street Primary School.

• The two Kleeberger brothers both volunteered within one month of WWI breaking out in Europe and were both on the second wave of the Gallipoli landing. Both were badly wounded; one died of wounds and the other went on to France and returned home in 1918.
• The three Neely brothers went to Gallipoli later in 1915. One was killed at the Battle of Lone Pine where he is buried. The other two brothers went on to France; one was killed at Pozieres in 1916 and the remaining brother returned home in 2018.

The boys who came home would have reflected with others at Dawn Services on their brothers who were killed giving service and never forgotten, and they would have reunited during the Anzac Day March with their mates who survived and returned home to a grateful nation.

All students were very attentive during the assembly, and all would have left feeling that Anzac Day is an important national occasion celebrating independence and freedom in which they could all feel included with pride.

Year 6 at the Canberra War Memorial

Earlier this year, our Year 6 students visited the Australian War Memorial and participated in the Last Post service.