RAIN brought Bethanga’s Anzac Day Service inside for the first time in 11 years on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But organisers felt the inside gathering did not detract from the service attended by one of their largest crowds.
Bethanga Action Group’s Judi Maynard said while it was a little disappointing the service could be held outside, people were very understanding.
“We are commemorating 100 years with this service, but people understand and want to be comfortable during the service,” she said.
A crowd of about 200 gathered inside, standing shoulder to shoulder inside the Bethanga Soldiers Memorial Hall.
Guest speaker Captain Troy Hollis from the Army Logistics Training Centre served eight years in the defence force and was involved in a tour of Afghanistan in 2011 and 2012.
“I always feel a very deep sense of responsibility, almost verging on the sense of fear, when I am asked to do a speech on Anzac Day,” he told those gathered.
“It comes from, primarily, because my experiences do not come close to those that our forbearers experienced 100 years ago today.
“The constant fear, the hardship, the daily struggle for life, these are experiences, thankfully, I have never endured while in Australia or deployed overseas in active service.
Captain Hollis went on to read from letters from World War I soldiers during their time in Gallipoli.
“These letters have some great material, as far as letters that have been sent home, to allow us to really drill into what the experiences were like for soldiers in World War I,” he said after the service.
“I am pleased to see just as many residents from Bethanga as there are from outlying areas.”
Amanda Craig, of Talgarno, attended with her sons Connor, 10, and Cody, 8.
“It was a great service, they set it up really well,” he said.
ANZAC DAY REPORTS
Albury: 'I think of my lost mates'
Boree Creek: Small crowd shows big respect for Anzac sacrifice
Wangaratta: Navy cook proud but still questioning 'why?'