Across the region and nationally, commemorations are being held on Thursday, August 18 to mark Vietnam Veterans’ Day, which is held on the anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan (1966). This year, the special day for Vietnam Vets is all the more significant in Armidale, with a new plaque in the Armidale Ex-Services Memorial Club to be officially unveiled by Member for Northern Tablelands, Richard Torbay.
The Club will be hosting a luncheon for veterans and partners, as well as the wives of local veterans who have passed on.
A formal commemorative service will also be conducted.
The ANZACs and today’s armed forces personnel return home with a certain pride in having served their country, service for which they are respected. That respect was not afforded to Vietnam veterans. So, giving them their own special day now means a great deal.
Organiser of Armidale’s Vietnam Veterans’ Day activities for 2011, Doug Lennox, served in the Australian Army for three decades, including two tours of Vietnam. “We were shunned. We would hope to arrive back in Australia at night, so we’d cop fewer or no protesters,” he said.
Thursday’s commemoration will honour the bravery, commitment and valour of our Vietnam veterans in the face of a dangerous enemy and a more dangerous public opinion. Lest We Forget.
Story: Gary Fry
