By Brendan Rees
Large crowds gathered under blue skies in Cranbourne to remember the sacrifices soldiers made a century ago on Sunday 11 November.
After the Final Post was played by bugler Mitchell Stewart, hundreds stood in a minute’s silence at the Cranbourne Cenotaph to commemorate the centenary of the Armistice – marking 100 years since the guns fell silent on the Western Front to end World War I on November 11, 1918.
Among those who gathered for Remembrance Day were veterans, community groups and school students.
Dandenong Cranbourne RSL sub-branch senior-vice president Bill Shepherd welcomed the crowd at a service held at the Cranbourne War Memorial at Greg Clydesdale Square.
In her address, City of Casey Mayor Amanda Stapledon spoke of the soldiers who fought “so courageously to keep us safe, alive and to give us a future and the freedom that we enjoy today.”
“Today’s ceremony and the many more which will follow, give us all a chance to express our deep gratitude to the men and women who marched to battle and bravely fought in foreign lands against a formidable enemy,” she said.
“It was these young fresh-faced men and women who have shaped the modern world of today.”
Community groups and the public were then invited to lay wreaths at the Cenotaph as a mark of respect to the fallen before eyes turned to the skies where the Air Force conducted a flyover.
In closing, Heather Thorne delivered a heartfelt rendition of the New Zealand and Australian national anthems.
Member for Holt Anthony Bryne said Remembrance Day was of great importance to him. “I had a grandfather who served in the First World War, he said. “He was severely injured and died early so to be able to come here on the Centenary of Armistice and pay my respects to him is very important for me and for the community.”
For 93-year-old Word War II Air Force veteran Roy Wheeler the day was about honouring past mates. “It means a great deal, brings back a lot of old memories,” he said.
