A huge crowd turned out to Memorial Park to remember those who served. Video / Alex Cairns
A cold chill sat heavy in the air this morning as thousands gathered to remember them.
As dawn prepared to break at Mount Maunganui, the crowd swelled as people shuffled from foot to foot.
An eerie silence fell and gave way to the haunting sound of bagpipes.
Backs straight, eyes shining bright, the old and young marched in unison. Every military service was represented and joined by cadets, scouts and mariners.
World War II and Korean War veteran Don Wilson, 94, was front and foremost. His youngest granddaughter, Elise Morgan, proudly pushed his wheelchair as he led the parade and she wiped tears from her eyes.
Wilson lied about his age and was only 15 when he was deployed to Japan, where he ended up in the medical corps before heading to Korea. However, he was adamant his contribution was nothing to crow about.
“I’m not anything special”.
Don Wilson (94) with granddaughter Elise Morgan at the Anzac Mount Maunganui dawn service. Photo / Alex Cairns
Mount Maunganui RSA president Arthur King said the “spirit” of the Anzacs would never be forgotten.
He said they would be remembered for their “tenacity, bravery and suffering”.
This year also marked the 107th forming of the Returned Services Association, which was still going strong today.
Rob McLean will retire from the army next month after clocking up more than 40 years of service.
He was remembering those servicemen who had passed on with his fellow 161 Battery, Royal New Zealand Artillery mates.
“We want to commemorate their service to our country by making us safe and providing the freedoms we enjoy today.”
Kenrick Smith created 108 sand crosses at Mount Maunganui for Anzac Day. Photo / Alex Cairns
On the beach with the cenotaph at his back, sand artist Kenrick Smith was fixing one of the 108 crosses he created to celebrate Anzac Day.
Work on the design started in the dark and was purposely kept simple.
“I really like coming to the dawn parade and I thought why not do something that everyone can enjoy and will be able to look at in the morning?” Smith said.
“I didn’t want to do a big complex design that could take away from the solemn nature of it.”
Allan Wright and Ralph Harvey were deep in reflection at the Mount Maunganui RSA after the service. Both were nursing a free shot of rum over a catch-up.
Wright went to Malaya in 1959 and those memories “have stuck with me ever since”.
For him, Anzac Day was about comradery and old mates.
Allan Wright (left) and Ralph Harvey enjoying a shot of rum at the Mount Maunganui RSA. Photo / Alex Cairns
The memories lived on, Wright said, and some were pretty bad.
“Anzac Day brings back a lot of feelings. My grandfather and great-uncle passed away in the First World War,” McFadyen said.
“There were a lot of sacrifices and even now with the modern conflicts that are going on, I think about those people and the conditions and the hardships that they’re going through.
“I’ve been known to shed a tear.”
At the Tauranga Civic Memorial Service, Master of Ceremonies and Tauranga City Council commission chair Anne Tolley said it was important the region stood together to commemorate Anzac Day.
“Today provides an opportunity not just to express collective grief for the lives lost or impacted by the physical and mental trauma sustained in battle, but to offer our thanks for what our servicemen and women have done and continue to do, to safeguard the freedoms we all treasure,” Tolley said.
Anne Tolley at the Tauranga Civic Memorial Service. Photo / Alex Cairns
Tolley said her grandfather fought on the Gallipoli Peninsula and she acknowledged Anzac Day had a personal significance for many people.
She said the soldiers demonstrated immense courage and indomitable spirit, winning the respect of friend and foe alike.
Lieutenant Commander Nicholas Foster of the Royal New Zealand Navy said we should all consider the ongoing struggle for a better, more peaceful world.
“When you look at the names of the fallen on our war memorials and elsewhere, think about what these men and women and their comrades who were lucky enough to survive,” Foster said.
“Think about the pain suffered, the lives cut short, the dreams unfulfilled, and the grief felt by those left behind.”
Ōtūmoetai College head student Karlia Taylor said stories of war are full of terror and loss.
“But also with courage, camaraderie, and sometimes miracles,” Taylor said.
Percy Frederick Wilson her great-great-grandfather was at Gallipoli and survived being shot by a sniper as a bullet hit the ammunition belt worn across his chest, stopping it from penetrating his body.
She said New Zealand was incredibly sheltered from the horror stories of war.
“We live in a country with freedom and acceptance as more of a reality today than it has ever been before.
“I challenge you to use your freedom to stand up for what you believe in.
“We owe it to those that fought to those that lost their lives for our country.”
Lieutenant Commander Nicolas Foster of the Royal New Zealand Navy speaks at the Tauranga Civic Memorial Service. Photo / Alex Cairns
Fellow Ōtūmoetai College head student Arwin Viduya said he did not have any medals to showcase or any blood connections to Anzac Day but that did not stop him from “showcasing my gratitude and respect to all the people involved”.
