On Saturday, August 15 the Parkes RSL Sub Branch is inviting all serving and ex-service members from the Parkes community to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, when victory in the Pacific was declared.
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Parkes RSL Sub Branch secretary Paul Thomas said all Australians will be encouraged to remember the service of the more than one million men and women who served during the Second World War, both abroad and at home.
"They fought in campaigns against Germany and Italy, in Europe, the Mediterranean and North Africa, as well as against Japan in South-East Asia and the Pacific," Mr Thomas said.
"As a nation we will stand together to remember the sacrifice of the some 39,000 men and women who died protecting our country during the war, in all theatres and campaigns."
The Australian mainland came under attack for the first time when hundreds were killed in air raids on Darwin, Broome and across Northern Australia.
As a nation we will stand together to remember the sacrifice of the some 39,000 men and women who died protecting our country.
- Paul Thomas
Midget submarines then attacked Sydney Harbour and the catastrophic sinking of the hospital ship Centaur off Brisbane on May 14 1943, saw the loss of 260 lives.
The fear of an all-out attack on Australia by Japanese forces was very real and the challenges great.
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Australia mobilised as a nation to counter the threat in our own backyard, with almost 8000 Australians losing their lives in the Papua and New Guinea campaigns.
Australian women played an extraordinary role during the Second World War, from nurses going overseas with the Australian Imperial Force in 1940, to those who worked in industry and agriculture on the home front.
"On Saturday, August 15, we mark 75 years since the Second World War was officially declared over by the then Prime Minister Ben Chifley, with Japan accepting the Allied Nations' terms of surrender," Mr Thomas said.
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He added that Parkes Town Crier Tim Keith will participate in a Cry for Peace Around the World after receiving an invitation in marking the 75th Anniversary of VP Day.
96-year-old Richard Baxter from Peak Hill, pictured above, is a returned serviceman from World War II, and has only missed one dawn service in his life.
The Peak Hill Multipurpose Service wanted to ensure Richard and the other residents would not miss out on a dawn service thanks to COVID-19 this year on April 25, so they created their own.
Social distancing was in place and it was a huge hit!
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