This weekend we were in Albany to participate in the departure of the ANZACS Centenary. One hundred years ago on November 1st, 1914 the first convoy of merchant and military ships carrying the Australian Imperial Force and the New Zealand Expeditionary Force headed out of Albany's King George Sound and into the First World War. We also had a great visit with Karin and Mick and had the honour of being in the presence of our hosts father Eric Maxton and uncle Murray Maxton who on this weekend received France's highest military award for bravery - the two brothers were recognized for the role they played in helping liberate France from the Nazi occupation. The boys (and us) had the pleasure of hearing stories first hand from Eric and seeing his award. Made us very thankful for all the men and women that made huge sacrifices in WW I and WW II so that we could live the life of freedom that we have now - thank you.
 |
| Eric and Murray are in the jeep in the parade behind the boys. |
 |
| the parade |
 |
| Tony Abbott - Australian Prime Minister |
 |
| Kade trying on some historical military clothing |
 |
| This is King George Sound where the ships with troops left for WWI to the right of Kade is a submarine and in the background are other military ships |
 |
| close up of the submarine |
 |
| The 30,000 represents the number of troops that left Albany in 1914 it is made of poppies |
 |
| Kade checking out the submarine up close |
 |
| Eric showing Sean and the boys his medals |
 |
| The Maxton/Hilder family |
 |
| Matthew, Eric and Kade |
 |
| Eric's medals - the top award is the one he received this weekend from the French Government |
 |
| Lest we never forget |
No comments:
Post a Comment