Photo By Chief Warrant Officer Bryan Nygaard | Maj. Gen. John A. Toolan, commander of Regional Command Southwest lays a wreath during...... read more read more
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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan – Coalition forces aboard Camp Leatherneck in Helmand province, Afghanistan, gathered together to commemorate Anzac Day with a ceremony at Regional Command Southwest’s headquarters, April 25.
Anzac Day is observed every year on April 25 in Australia and New Zealand to honor the soldiers of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli, Turkey, during World War I. More than 10,000 Australian and New Zealand troops lost their lives during the Gallipoli Campaign.
The ceremony included the laying of a wreath, the playing of “The Last Post” and “Reveille,” and a reading of the fourth stanza of the poem, “For the Fallen.”
Australian Navy Lt. Chris Cockerill, officer in command for Combined Explosives Exploitation Cell, RC (SW), served as the master of ceremonies during the event.
“It’s of enormous significance,” said Cockerill, a native of Queensland, Australia. “To be in a theater of war and to be able to mark this occasion as the only Australian service member is a huge honor. It’s something I’ll always remember.”
For Lt. Cmdr. David Walker, planning and operations officer for RC (SW) Public Affairs, it held a more personal meaning. Walker’s great uncle, Pvt. Nathaniel Walker, served in a U.K. battalion during the Gallipoli Campaign. He was killed while attempting to break through Turkish lines.
Walker recently visited the Gallipoli battlefield and walked on the ground where his great uncle fought. He said what really struck him was a marble tablet on the battlefield that read, “Your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace.”
“It’s something that I’m actually quite emotional about,” said Walker, a native of Glasgow, Scotland. “It’s one remarkable statement concerning reconciliation.”
Australia and New Zealand currently have more than 1,700 troops deployed to Afghanistan in support of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force.
| Date Taken: | 04.25.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 04.26.2011 05:32 |
| Story ID: | 69348 |
| Location: | CAMP LEATHERNECK, AF |
| Web Views: | 379 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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