By Ann Marie
JEAN King, 87, has been on a mission for close to a decade.
And last Wednesday at 3pm, it was mission accomplished.
The Yarraville resident’s campaign to erect a memorial to honour the men and women who had defended Australian soil during World War II ended, as a two-metre-high, polished black granite monument was unveiled in Spotswood.
“It occurred to me that these people have never been adequately remembered,” she said.
“We have many memorials about general conflicts but none concentrate specifically on the defence of Australia.”
Jean points to Japan’s 1942 bombings of Darwin and Broome, and submarine attacks on Sydney and Newcastle, as examples of how Australian forces bravely rallied to defend their country.
“Had the Japanese taken over this country, we would not be here today – it’s that simple.”
The monument’s formal opening on 15 August by retired RAAF air commodore John Macneil, local school children, and the Australian Army Band marked VJ Day, when the Allies celebrated victory over Japan.
A one-time councillor on the former Footscray council in the late 1980s, the feisty widow’s first plans envisaged the monument at Footscray Park.
Her council successors were originally interested but then chose to build a memorial to honour migrants instead, she said.
But Jean did not stop.
She kept promoting the project until she secured a spot in Veterans Reserve on Mary Street, along with community, government, and business sponsorship for landscaping, a flagpole, and seats.
The historic casting company, Furphy’s Foundry, donated the seats for visitors to relax and reflect, or just read the newspaper, she said.
That company’s motto, “good, better, best, never let it rest till your good gets better and your better gets best” made it a fitting sponsor, she said.
“The men and women who defended this country were the very, very best.”
The all-Australian memorial also included work by Sunshine’s Layton Sandstone.
Jean acknowledged the road to completing the project had been “bumpy” but worthwhile.
“I feel very privileged to have been a part of this,” she said.
“This little park is going to be a real asset to Hobsons Bay.”
Jean’s husband Frank, who served during the war as a salvage diver among other roles, and died in 1994, would have been proud.
“I keep saying this will be my last project,” she says.
After a moment, she adds, “until my next one.”
