With the status of large Anzac Day commemorations in doubt country towns across Australia are preparing for small, intimate dawn services.
Key points:
- Anzac Day is one of the largest community gatherings of the year for regional SA
- Dawn services often attract crowds far larger than the population of the towns
- Many are looking forward to being able to gather again this year after cancellations in 2020
Mantung, in South Australia’s Mallee region, has a population of 12 but annually welcomes more than 100 to its community hall for the dawn service.
The first Australian-born Sikh killed in action during World War I hailed from Mantung.
“There are a lot of stories — one is Roy Stasinowsky, who was in the prisoner of war camp in Burma,” Mantung Hall chair Mick Evans said.
“There was the Fitzsimmons, they had three of their sons go and they lost one.
“He was buried in Centennial Park (in Adelaide) and the parents bought the headstone back when the lease run out to put next to our plaque.”
Some of the attendees come from localities near Mantung, but the majority are former residents who see the dawn service as a way to reconnect with their hometown.
“We turn it into a bit of a day event because people travel a fair way to come back, so we have a canteen and bar set up so people can catch up and reminisce,” Mr Evans said.
Riverside service to return
Paul Hansen has been running a private riverside dawn service at his property, the Kulcurna Homestead in New South Wales, for the past 25 years.
The service has grown from a family gathering to a well-known event for Murray River holidaymakers and generally attracts about 100 people who pull up in their houseboats and tinnies to take part.
“Before the second one we ever had, there were some people camped up the river and I spoke to them the evening before,” Mr Hansen said.
“On the morning, all our lights were on and a fella in the houseboat across from the house came out and asked if everything was alright and we just said ‘Yes, we’re just having a dawn service’.
“He asked if he could come over, so eight or 10 came from there and it’s grown ever since.”
At the onset of World War I, 37 young men out of a staff of around 45 people from the nearby Lake Victoria Station enlisted for service, as well as Mr Hansen’s grandfather and great uncle.
“It gives you some idea of the camaraderie and people going for the cause,” Mr Hansen said.
Renmark to march on
The Riverland town of Renmark in South Australia annually holds a dawn service, a mid-morning commemoration and a veterans march to mark Anzac Day.
Renmark RSL sub-branch president Peter Higgs said organisers were expecting about 500 people to attend this year’s event.
“The 2021 service is looking, at this point in time, like it would look any other year,” he said.
“For some of our members that are more involved it was a bit of a sore point and a bit sad that we couldn’t go through with our usual dawn service [last year].”
Elsewhere in the Riverland, the Loxton RSL has confirmed it will host the town’s dawn service.
Barmera’s service has been cancelled.