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**In Memorium** On the following pages we include Eulogies and mentions of our battalion members who have marched on to their eternal reward. Sincere apologies for any that may have been inadvertently left out. But each one, man by man, has won imperishable praise! Each has won a glorious grave - not that sepulchre of earth wherein they lie, but the living tomb of everlasting remembrance wherein their glory is enshrined. Remembrance that will live on the lips, that will blossom in the deeds of their countrymen the world over. For the whole world is the sepulchre of heroes. Monuments may rise and tablets be set up to them in their own land, but on far-off shores there is an abiding memorial that no pen or chisel has traced; it is graven, not on stone or brass, but on the living heart of humanity. Take these men as your example. Like them, remember that prosperity can only be for the free, that freedom is the sure possession of those alone who have courage to defend it...... Pericles (495 - 429 BC).
19 Apr '06
VALE: 61809 Gary John KENDRICK. 24 Apr '06 I had the privilege
of attending Gary's funeral service on behalf of members of 11 Platoon,
especially John Woodley who is currently recuperating from knee replacement
surgery. There were several ex-members of the battalion in attendance, notably Rollo Brett 12 Platoon's first skipper, Phil Bunyan ex 12 Platoon Comd first tour and Bob Sayce ex trackers Pl Comd first tour. There were probably many more ex military among the mourners that I failed to recognise. It was obvious from
the large crowd of mourners in attendance that Gary had been a highly respected
member of his community, very emotional but beautifully stated eulogies
were delivered by his three children, Erick, Vanessa
and Frank. Rollo Brett also spoke of Gary's Military career. On behalf of all members of the battalion especially those with whom Gary served I would extend to Gary's wife, his three children and all his family our sincere and heartfelt condolences......ed
LEST WE FORGET
17657 SERGEANT DENNIS
RICHARD HUGHES 3791575 Mervyn Francis Newell Elaine Barrett from Launceston today informed us of the passing of Merv Newell. Merv served with 11 Platoon Delta Coy on the first tour. Merv had been seriously ill for quite some time, he passed away yesterday, 20 Apr '06. Merv...Merv...Merv He was a tall man with glasses who never stood out in a crowd, Merv was the quiet one who never spoke out loud. He'd go about his business with very little fuss But man if you crossed him..."You'd be sure put on a bus". From the bank he started working before heading off to war, though his eyesight was poorly he just couldn't believe what he saw. But he fought for our freedom and did his country proud, spoke personally very little bout 'Nam, especially out loud. Vietnam war was not a nice one and we'll keep that on a slate, but Merv was alucky bloke for he had many many mates. I'd often talk to Merv and share a joke at night real late, when Merv would call from Vic just to talk to one ole mate. Finally the day came when we all agreed to meet, and I'll never forget that bloke in Victoria at Flinders Street. Nev shook hands with Merv and we laughed in a muddle, then he stood there smiling' as we were all so tightly cuddled. From then the friendship bonded tighter and we were never ever alone, for Friday nights we waited for the GREAT WHITE HUNTER to phone. He chased the Tassie Tiger when down the west coast I sent, young Karl and Merv to look after Nev, and they stayed there in a tent. Time ticked by and letters started mentioning someone Merv was yet to tame. It wasn't Woodie or brother Kevin but a lass called Kath was the new name. Finally young Mervyn Newell had another surprise in store, when he and Kath packed up their gear and landed on Tassie shores. Ringarooma was the spot and so with all the horses in tow, Merv proudly went 'bout this place and proudly he did show.
He showed us how to live life and fought Veterans Affairs quite a bit, then hopped in the silver rocky he loved and drove it like a fit. Quietly he noticed but chose carefully not to tell of how his health was fading, he REALLY wasn't very well. Finally he'd slowed up and to hospital he had to land, but it was here that Merv chose to put a ring on his sweet Kathy's hand. He admired the nurses and the staff of the Scottsdale hospital there, and I wish to thank them dearly for Merv's VERY special care. While we all hold hands and with heavy hearts on this his farewell day, Merv touched our lives with love and kindness in so many different ways. On Wednesday night I prayed so hard then to Merv I walked on in, but my mate was getting weary and the light was growing dim. I rubbed his hair and as Kath held his hand we said '..You're not alone..", "Tis time dear Merv to go now as your Mum and Dad are waiting for you at home" Today dear Merv we "Thank You" for your love, faith, spirit, memories and for being our special mate. So journey on our precious friend.... We look forward to meeting again at the pearly gates. Written with fondest love to Merv from Elaine Barrett for his final farewell. 24 April 2006. Legerwood Community Church.( Tas) 17871 CORPORAL MICHAEL JOHN HEFFERNAN
FOURTH BATTALION
If anyone was a mate it was Mick Heffernan. Michael or, as we affectionately knew him, Mick, was a signaller in the Fourth Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (4RAR) and served with the Battalion in Australia and on active service in Malaysia, Borneo and South Vietnam. He joined 4RAR on the twelfth of March 1964 just after the Battalion was raised in Woodside, SA. Mick was an original member of the Battalion and as such his name is written in gold in the Battalion records.
Mick
was so attached to the Battalion that he allowed his sister Jenny to marry
another member of the Battalion, Terry Ace. We have all seen a radio operator carrying that much food, ammunition and radio equipment that his mates have had to help him to his feet. We have all seen a radio operator, so physically and mentally exhausted after an operation, that he has sat down and gone to sleep still with his radio strapped to his back. How many of us owe our lives to the strength of character, the will and the determination of a radio operator who was prepared to give more than was humanly expected of him to give. Mick was one of those radio operators and soldiers but he was more than that, he was gentleman. When a 4RAR veteran could not attend the Welcome Home Parade his youngest daughter was given permission to march in his stead. Mick saw this lost young woman in the crowd looking for the 4RAR members and after she identified herself as a 4RAR child, it was Mick Heffernan who literally took her by the hand and asked her to march beside him. Thanks Mick. Mick was a warrior and a true hero and we, his mates in 4RAR will sadly miss him, but we know and understand that God has a special place in heaven for soldiers and that is where Mick is now, probably asking God for a radio check to ensure that God has contact with the other angels. The warrior with a rifle in one hand and a radio handset in the other, has gone home.
DUTY FIRST
From the President and members of the 4RAR Association, Qld Note from Noel Fairley Hi All, Fri 4th was a long day, flew into Melb, Max picked us up then onto Curlewis Golf Club; 2 hr drive. Funeral started on time a crowd of 150 to 200 turned up. Mick had planned every thing to the last detail. It was a moving experience what was said. Alan your speech was very well received. Mark your wreath was lovely.The whole service was lovely. Les Finger, John Deighton & Ray O’Hara were there. I put all of you in the book & your condolence’s to the family. After the service Max took us to Dandenong RSL to see their memorial; very impressive, then back to the airport to come home. Plane was delayed 2 hrs got back to Bris 0115 hrs so it was a long day but glad I went. Noel. The following was received from Gabrielle Pitcher (Mick's sister): At the funeral, my son wrote and read the following poem. He spent 5 years with the French Foreign Legion and was a bombardier 5 years service in the ozy army reserve. If you think appropriate, you may post this on the site for mates of Mick to read. An ode to my uncle. Digger Mick Those who have seen war, Will never stop seeing it. So drape the drums in black, And send a volley of three, that echoes through eternity. The whistle and thunder of the drop shorts are heard no more. The barking lady of the night, Fades with glowing final burst. And no more enemies can be heard. Time to scratch one last foxhole, Time to rest a weary diggers soul. So parade one last time, With fallen comrades of old. No rank or file, just an army of souls. So charge your glass, And raise your hand, Be proud you knew this man. Put down your shield and sword, Lift your headdress, And break your belt. The only pain left here is, in tears and memories felt. by CPL Bradley Pitcher 2 R.E.P for SIG M.J.Heffernan 4 R.A.R.
To The Men of 4 RAR
Memorial Service for Bruno Adamczyk A Coy, 4 RAR & D Coy, 9 RAR 1100 hours, Wednesday 12 July, 2006. Centennial Park, South Australia.
Background
When Bruno was killed in action in Vietnam on the 12 of July, 1969, he left behind his very young wife, Cecilia. He also left behind his two young daughters, Jackie, who was 7 years old, and Michelle, who was about 2 years old. It is history now that the pressure of Bruno’s death on Cecilia was so great that she soon found herself in hospital and, subsequently, surrendered custody of the two girls to Bruno’s parents who then raised them. A decision was taken at the time of Bruno’s funeral that the girls should not attend. Since that time Bruno’s parents have died and, despite many attempts, the girls have never been able to reunite with their Mother, Cecilia. The situation now is that the girls wish for the service that they never had. They would like to put some closure on the loss of their father.
Situation
Some of you met with Jackie at the 1997 reunion in Adelaide. Most, if not all, have never met Michelle. Michelle is now a delightful young woman who is married and has 2 children of her own. In August, 2005, the realization occurred to her that she knew nothing of her Dad and in turn knew nothing of a large part of her own life. Michelle’s son Dylan has had a recent brush with death due to liver disease. This prompted Michelle to do something positive in relation to her Dad that she might otherwise not have done. Michelle wants for her, her sister Jackie and their children, to enjoy the service for Bruno that they were never able to have. They need to put some closure on the loss of their Dad, they need to bury the past. They need their children to attend a service that says “ this service is for our Dad and your Grandfather “. The girls wish to say to their children, “yes your Grandad did exist and your Grandad is a part of the history of this nation”. Appeal On behalf of Michelle and Jackie, I appeal to you, the members of 4 RAR on two fronts. Firstly, the girls are asking for copies of any photos that you may have of their Dad or any old slides that can be printed as photographs. Secondly, we are asking that if there is any way by which you can make it to Adelaide for Bruno’s Memorial Service on the 12th of July, 2006, please, get here – come to Adelaide. I can be contacted on; Featherby41@optusnet.com.au or 08 8443 3434 or 0412 462 143 Please notify me if you can make it, but if you can’t, then send a message to me, for the girls, that can be read out on the day of Bruno’s service. Would you please send me your contact details, particularly your Email address, for future correspondence re Bruno’s Memorial Service. I look forward to your response. I know all this is a big ask but, if ever you thought “heh - he was my mate” now is the time, and the opportunity, to demonstrate that. I only wish that you could be here with the girls to see first hand that they need this service, and they need your support. We all know that the Battalion is a very unique unit and we all know that it is your Battalion for life.
With Respect, Warren Featherby President 9 RAR Association, SA. 7 Tracey Avenue Flinders Park Sth Aust, 5025.
Served 10 Platoon D COY 4 RARNZ Vietnam 21st MAY 1968 to 31st JULY 1968. Badly wounded by a claymore type mine during a contact while he was forward scout.
MAY HE REST IN PEACE.
VALE 5715239 UGO DE LONGIS Fourth Battalion The Royal Australian Regiment/New Zealand (ANZAC) [4RAR/NZ (ANZAC)] 14 August 1946 – 06 September 2006 5715239 Private Ugo De Longis was a National Servicemen who went to war in 1968. He did not want to join the Army but was forcibly invited due to the National Service Act. When he did arrive he immediately volunteered for service in South Vietnam. Ugo became a warrior in the famous armed forces of Australia, respected since World War One by friend and foe alike; respected for their audacity, their sense of camaraderie, their sense of humour and their courage under fire. Ugo volunteered to go to war not because of the overall aim of stopping the war in South Vietnam but because his mates went and he did not want to let them down. They had trained together and in Ugo’s eyes it was only right that they should fight together. The Spirit of ANZAC was always paramount in Ugo’s mind and he went to war with D Company, Fourth Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (4RAR) in Vietnam as the forward scout of two section, 10 Platoon. To understand Ugo as a soldier is to know the ways of a forward scout. A forward scout leads a section of ten men; in turn a platoon of 33 men; in turn a company of 120 men and often leads a battalion of 550 men. It is the loneliest and the most daunting job of any member of the Infantry. The scout is the only member of a unit who has no protection or covering fire in front of him or to the side. He is normally the one that the baddies shoot at first. He has the task of attempting to remain on a compass bearing while selecting the route between navigation bounds, which at most times are between trees ten feet apart. He has the task of looking for sign of the enemy such as boot prints or scrapes against trees, of looking for and identifying deliberate signs left by the enemy to guide their own troops, of identifying likely ambush sites, of detecting signs of mines and booby traps, of attempting to smell the enemy by the aroma of cooked or raw rice and fish, of attempting to hear the enemy before being heard, of attempting to locate enemy latrines by the number of flies in the air, of locating enemy bunker systems often indicated by camouflaged tree stumps. He has the task of attempting to keep alive those of his mates behind them, to get them from point A to point B, to sight the enemy first and to kill him; and all the while attempting to understand the sometimes-confusing silent signals sent up to him by the Section Commander. At the same time that he is doing this, an equally smart and just as professional forward scout on the other side is attempting to find him. It took an exceptional soldier to be a forward scout in Vietnam. Ugo was an exceptional soldier and an exceptional scout, one of the best to serve in Vietnam. Ugo was a marvel as a forward scout, he had that inbuilt sense to determine when something was wrong and his section commander, travelling behind him, could easily read Ugo’s mind by the tautness of the neck muscles, the tilt of the head or the slower motions of his movements that alerted the section commander long before Ugo would send back the field signal that something was wrong. He had the uncanny ability to detect that things were not as they seemed by the smell in the air, by the disturbance of the undergrowth or just plain premonition. In fact after he was wounded in action and evacuated to hospital by helicopter, the section felt that their good luck charm had left and that they had better get their act together. Ugo was a warrior of the Australian Army, the most respected army in the world; that in turn made Ugo a warrior respected by the rest of the world. He was mostly respected however by those who served with him, his commanders and his fellow warriors. This can be demonstrated by those amongst others, who have personally offered their condolences. Major General Mike Keating AM, Brigadier John Deighton AM, MC, Brigadier David Thomson MC, Brigadier Lee Greville DSO, Major Ray Hannah, Lieutenant Ross Sillar, Warrant Officer Class One Tony Toghill MBE, Warrant Officer Class One Bluey Gibson DCM, Warrant Officer Class Two Ron Nettlefold, Warrant Officer Class Two Alan Price, Sergeant Mick Carroll DCM, The members of 10 Platoon and D Company 4RAR/NZ (ANZAC), Warrant Officer Class Two Bob Pearson, the President of the Fourth Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment Association, Queensland on behalf of all members of the association and, All members of the now 4RAR (Commando), currently based in Sydney and serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and East Timor. For his service to Australia Ugo was awarded the: Australian Active Service Medal 1945-1975 with clasp Vietnam, Vietnam Medal, Australian Defence Medal Anniversary of National Service Medal, 1951-1972 Vietnamese Campaign Medal, Infantry Combat Badge, and Returned From Active Service Badge. To have served in the Fourth Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment for us was a privilege; to have served with Ugo was an extraordinary privilege. We thank the family and friends of Ugo for that extraordinary privilege. Ugo, in that special place in heaven reserved for warriors, please scout around and find a place for us, your fellow warriors and your mates. Good-bye mate, well done and may God bless you and keep you until we meet again. Duty First.
18182 DIGBY JOHN HAMMONDFourth Battalion The Royal Australian Regiment (4RAR)
31 February 1946 - 08 October 2006
18182 Warrant Office Class Two Digby John Hammond
was a soldier who went to war. He enlisted in the Australian Regular Army on 30
May 1963 and served for the next twenty six years.
”You might have never noticed it but I loved that
platoon and as I told the Royal Marines when I was Ship's Adjutant of HMS
Fearless and as I told the US Marines when I was with them in Da Nang (South
Vietnam), I would have backed my platoon Eleven Platoon, against any other from
any other Army in the entire world”.
Brigadier David Thomson MC, Brigadier John Deighton AM, MC, The former RSM of the Army, Arthur Francis OAM, Warrant Officer Class One Bluey Gibson DCM, Warrant Officer Class One Darcy Tillbrook, Warrant Officer Class Two Doug Burke, Former members of D Company, Fourth Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, and Warrant Officer Class Two Alan Price, the President of the Fourth Battalion the Royal Australian Regiment Association Queensland, on behalf of all members of the association and all officers and soldiers of the now 4RAR (Commando), currently based in Sydney and serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and East Timor.
For his service to Australia Digby was awarded the:
Australian Active Service Medal 1945-1975 with clasps Malaysia and Vietnam, General Service Medal 1962 with clasp Borneo Vietnam Medal, Australian Service Medal 1945-1975 with clasp South East Asia Defence Force Service Medal Australian Defence Medal Vietnamese Campaign Medal, Pinjat Jasa - Malaysia Infantry Combat Badge, and the Returned From Active Service Badge.
To have served in the Fourth Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment for us was a privilege; to have served with Digby was an extraordinary privilege. We thank you for allowing us the extraordinary privilege of serving beside your partner and your father.
Digby, in that special place in heaven reserved for warriors, please find a harbour for us, your fellow warriors and your mates. Good-bye mate, well done and may God bless you and keep you until we meet again.
The warrior with a rifle in one hand and a mischievous smile on his face has gone home.
DUTY FIRST
Thanks to Al Price for this eulogy
Info Received from Ross McGregor (Qld Sec)...thanks Ross
We have just been informed of the
sudden death in South Australia of one of our SA Association members;
4721870
Pte Robert John Kennett
4RAR/NZ (ANZAC) 1970-71
Died 23 January 2007
No details to hand yet.
Regards
Ross McGregor
Secretary
Carole "Cass" Holborow1950 -2007 "We shared many secrets, we shared lots of good times, and we laughed ‘till we cried, and we have lots of Memories, I'm Glad you're my friend." Brian Holborow 12 Pl D Coy 4RAR SVN 68/69
ROLL OF HONOUR
Once again we honour al those who have
gone before us. In this brief moment of
5713892 Mathews W.J. (Snowy) From Vic Salis in Perth, Snowy Mathews died in WA on Friday 20th April '07, no details are available yet, but we will keep you posted as we receive them. Rest in Peace old mate.
Info received from Ross McGregor (Sec 4RAR Assoc Qld) in Brisbane....thanks Roscoe
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