August 2017

This newsletter is the official newsletter of the 4 RAR Association, Qld Inc, issued in April, August and December

each year . Articles for publication should be directed to The Editor, 4 RAR Assoc, Qld Inc no later than one month

prior to the month of publication. We welcome your stories, reminiscences and comments.

Tel: (07) 3273 7973 Email: apriced4@bigpond.net.au www.4rarassociationsaustralia.com

PO Box 5354 Algester Qld 4115

4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2/4 RAR , 4 RAR (Cdo)4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2/4 RAR , 4 RAR (Cdo)4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2/4 RAR , 4 RAR (Cdo)4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2/4 RAR , 4 RAR (Cdo)

Malaysia, Borneo, South Vietnam, East Timor, Iraq, Timor Leste, Afghanistan.Malaysia, Borneo, South Vietnam, East Timor, Iraq, Timor Leste, Afghanistan.Malaysia, Borneo, South Vietnam, East Timor, Iraq, Timor Leste, Afghanistan.Malaysia, Borneo, South Vietnam, East Timor, Iraq, Timor Leste, Afghanistan.

The Fighting Fourth

THE LADIES LUNCHEON 2017

(LIDS- Ladies In Direct Support)

The annual 4 RAR Assoc, Qld Inc Ladies' Luncheon

was conducted at the Restaurant, "66 On Ernest" again

on Thursday 22 June. Thirty ladies attended, including

our specially invited ladies Alison Hocking, Deslie

Hann, Christine Upton, Pam McCloskey and Lyn

Wilkes who as our widows, were the guests of the As-

sociation. Twenty five other ladies and four males at-

tended.

The males, Bob Hadlow, Rick Male and Alan Price

in "accord with LIDS SOP", were seated as a group,

alone in another part of the restaurant. Later, after pip-

ing the LIDS into lunch, Private Tim Anderson, the

Pipe Sergeant of the 8th/9th Battalion, Royal Austra-

lian Regiment Pipes and Drums, joined them.

Continued Page 2

The Ladies’

Luncheon

Page 2

The Canine

Operational

Service Medal

Page 5

Honour Roll

Page 6

A Warrior Died

Today

Page 7

Queensland

Report

Page 9

From The

President

Page 11

VALE

Page 3

Townsville

(Thurstonville)

Reunion

Page 12

A Warrior Died

Today

Page 7

Page 2

Tim surprised Irma by playing

the bag pipes that Irma had do-

nated to the 8/9 RAR Pipes and

Drums earlier in the year. Tim

piped the ladies into the dining

room and offered the traditional

Gaelic toast to the Queen, He

later piped the ladies out when

the luncheon ended. The ladies

showed their appreciation by

loud applause.

Mr Soren Neilsen and his col-

league Ms Jane Biltriss from the

firm, Health and Hearing were

the special guests and both were

made welcome by Maureen

Price, Soren was introduced as

the guest speaker and he spoke

about the way that deafness af-

fects us in a community and how

our hearing can be improved by

sometimes free, newly developed

hearing aids.

It was a very interesting ad-

dress. Both Soren and Jane were

presented with gifts in apprecia-

tion. Soren was invited to become

an Associate Member and Jane

won the door prize! It is hoped

that both Soren and Jane made a

lot of new friends on the day. All

in all, a good day was experi-

enced and it was great to see so

many ladies smiling and laugh-

ing. It was noted that Soren is a

Dane and now residing in Austra-

lia and he was asked at one stage

to give Princess Mary back. He

flatly refused!

From page 1 THE LADIES’ LUNCHEON 2017

Two large female family

groups attended; the Ma Baker

Gang included the matriarch,

Lorraine Baker wife of Frank

Baker former 4 RAR medic,

Suzanne Baker, Michelle Ibbert-

son, Juirsa O'Neill and Kayla

Peters.

The Mountney clan arrived

headed by Lisa Mountney with

Nicole Mountney, Rachel

Mountney and Chelsea Wintour,

all descendents of their matri-

arch, Maureen Price.

Some of our dependables at-

tended again in Liz Burgess,

Kay Shannon, Susan O'Neill,

Laraine Edwards with her friend

Ronda Pearce. Rhonda Lauze

was invited by Christine Upton

and seated nearby were Lynda

Hadlow, Janice Dorber and Ros

Male with Deslie Hann and her

friend, Judy Gray.

One of the highlights was the

presence of two of our card la-

dies again, Loraine Skinner and

Irma Munn. Irma Munn was am-

bushed by the 8/9 RAR, Pipe

Sergeant, Tim Anderson.

Missing was the joking and

laughter of our recently deceased

Rita Bostock and she was greatly

missed. Bob Hadlow took the

photos of the day that appear in

this article. Thanks Bob, well

done.

VALE

AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN, AND IN THE MORNING, AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN, AND IN THE MORNING, AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN, AND IN THE MORNING, AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN, AND IN THE MORNING,

WE WILL REMEMBER THEM. WE WILL REMEMBER THEM. WE WILL REMEMBER THEM. WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

Once again we honour all those who have gone before us.

In this brief moment of our time may we consider the stress and strain these men must have passed through before laying down their crosses of life. Enable us, their friends to be worthy of the trust they have imparted unto us on their passing; for theirs was an honourable and noble life. May God grant unto their families His peace.

We only hope that there are none recently which should have been reported.

We sincerely apologise if we have been remiss.

Brian Kingsley Heath 18 July 2017

Neal Joseph "Killer" Kinnane 20 June 2017

Terence "Terry" Ace 02 June 2017

Robert Stanley "Bob" Secrett 09 May 2017

To all that have passed in the service of 4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ (ANZAC), 2/4 RAR and 4 RAR (Cdo) Well done, thou good and noble warriors, we will never forget!

In Memorium are displayed on the 4 RAR Associations of Australia Web site at: 4rarassociationsaustralia.com/passing-parade.html

LESTWE FORGET .LESTWE FORGET .LESTWE FORGET .LESTWE FORGET .

BBC Digital - Making work flow For over 30 years BBC Digital has been making work

flow. Their strategy is to always be pro-active rather

than reactive. BBC Digital are sponsors of the 4 RAR

Associations, Australia newsletter, The Fighting

Fourth. BBC Digital some time ago, with the assis-

tance of a retired former 4 RAR officer donated a

large Canon printer which enables us to print The Fighting Fourth in

magazine form at a reduced cost and at reduced timings. We no longer

have to take the draft newsletter to outside resources to have printed, we can do it by ourselves, pro-

fessionally and quickly. Our strategy like that of BBC Digital, has always been to be proactive rather

than reactive. BBC Digital has allowed us to achieve our objectives and we are so very proud and

thankful to be associated with them as they offer a complete workflow solution covering the three key

areas of document control: printers, copiers and scanners. If you are in business contact BBC Digital

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Page 3

Our printer and office.

Page 4

What cannot be displayed are

the weather conditions, the

smells, the knee deep freezing

mud and water in winter, the

smell of trench foot, the smell of

latrines and the multitude of flies

and rats in summer; the cold in

winter and the heat in summer.

What the display does cause us

to imagine however, is the brav-

ery, gallantry, determination,

professionalism and certainly the

hardships and sometimes hope-

lessness of those soldiers de-

picted wearing the colour patch

of the 4th Battalion, white over

green.

The battalion was raised within

a fortnight of the declaration of

war in August 1914 and em-

barked just two months later.

After a brief stop in Albany,

Western Australia, the battalion

proceeded to Egypt, arriving on

2 December.

The battalion took part in the

ANZAC landing on 25 April

1915 as part of the second and

third waves.

THE 4 RAR MUSEUM ANNEX

THE 4 RAR MUSEUM

ANNEX,

THE GOLD COAST WAR

MUSEUM

New Display: The 4th Austra-

lian Infantry Battalion, Austra-

lian Imperial Force.

The 4th Australian Infantry

Battalion, Australian Imperial

Force (4 AIB, AIF) was among

the first infantry units raised for

the AIF during the First World

War. Like the 1st, 2nd and 3rd

Battalions, it was recruited from

New South Wales and together

with these battalions, formed the

1st Brigade of the 1st Division.

One of the many new displays

at the 4 RAR Museum Annex at

the Gold Coast War Museum de-

picts soldiers of 4 AIB, AIF in

the trenches at Gallipoli facing

towards "no man's land" in both

winter and summer.

The combined displays tell the

story of the battalion at Gallipoli;

their dress, weapons, ammuni-

tion, equipment, tools, rations and

personal items.

The commander of the 4th Bat-

talion, Lieutenant Colonel A. J.

O. Thompson, was killed the next

day. At ANZAC, the battalion

took part in the defence of the

beachhead and in August, along

with the rest of the 1st Brigade,

led the charge at Lone Pine.

The battalion served at ANZAC

until the evacuation of all Austra-

lian forces in December, 1915.

The museum display is the

property of the 4 RAR Associa-

tion, Qld Inc which comple-

mented and assisted the efforts

and finances put in by Bob

Meehan OAM and Wally Greico,

the 4 RAR Association, Qld Inc

curators responsible for the dis-

play.

Please visit the Gold Coast

War Museum which includes the

4 RAR Museum Annex at:

42 John Rogers Rd off the

S p r i n g b r o o k R d ,

Mudgeeraba 4213 Phone

Page 5

Clasps

A clasp with the name of the operation for which the award is made is presented with the medal. A further award of the Canine Operational Service Medal in another area of opera-tions is recognised by the issue of an additional clasp. Addi-tional clasps are worn above pre-viously awarded clasps, in order of date of receipt. The following clasps have been issued for the medal so far: East Timor, Iraq 03, Solomon Is 11, Timor-Leste, and G.M.E. (Greater Middle East Operations).

Combat Assault Dog Quake

Combat Assault Dog (CAD)

Quake was born early March

2008 within the RAAF puppy

programme and mentored by an

RAAF handler until 2011. Quake

was selected for SASR CAD

reinforcement cycle in early

2011 and on successful comple-

tion was posted to 2 Sqn, SASR.

Quake was deployed to Afghani-

stan with 1 Sqn SASR on Special

Operations Training Group

(SOTG) 16 in September 2011 to

replace another CAD that had

been wounded in action (WIA).

Quake performed well on his

tour with 1 Sqn and on numerous

occasions was responsible for the

early warning of enemy and ap-

prehension of insurgents.

In January 2012, CAD Quake

was posted to 3 Sqn SASR and

THE CANINE OPERATIONAL SERVICE MEDAL

deployed to Afghanistan with

SOTG 17 arriving at Tarin Kowt

in February 2012. Again, on nu-

merous occasions Quake appre-

hended insurgents as well as pro-

viding early warning of enemy

dispositions and equipment.

On 25 June 2012, Quake per-

formed outstandingly. On this

day he provided early detection

of an enemy sentry position. He

then immediately acted to inter-

dict an insurgent hidden in a con-

cealed position and during which

he was killed in action by small

arms fire. He died instantly.

However, Quake’s actions forced

the insurgent to reveal his loca-

tion thereby allowing the remain-

der of the patrol to close with and

kill him. It also forced other en-

emy soldiers in the immediate

vicinity, who had formed a good

ambush position, to move. This

movement was observed by the

SASR troop and they engaged the

enemy killing five of them with

no loss to the Australians.

Quake was handled in turn by

three members of the SASR:

Trooper MG, Lance Corporal JA

and Corporal DB.

CAD Quake was awarded the

Canine Operational Service

Medal with Clasp Afghanistan

and also, the Canine Service

Medal awarded by the Australian

Defence Force Trackers and War

Dogs Association.

The Canine Operational

Service Medal

The Canine Operational Ser-vice Medal was introduced on 8 June 2017 to recognise the con-tribution Military Working Dogs make whilst serving on opera-tions. The Medal forms part of the Department of Defence's internal recognition scheme and is not part of the Australian Honours and Awards System. The Australian Defence Force is the first Defence Force to imple-ment recognition of this nature.

The Medal will be awarded to Military Working Dogs who have 30 days service continuous or aggregated on a declared op-eration.

Phase one of the project will focus on identifying Military Working Dogs with service on operations from East Timor (1999) to current day. Phase two will focus on Defence conduct-ing research to identify Military Working Dogs with service from Vietnam onwards.

Design

The Medal is made in Austra-lia from nickel-silver and has been designed to reflect the Aus-tralian Defence Force Military Working Dog capability. The obverse (front) features Combat Assault Dog Quake, who was bred by the Air Force Breeding Program and passed training elements to become an Army Combat Assault Dog. Quake died on operations in Afghani-stan on 25 June 2012. The re-verse (back) features the Austra-lian Defence Force logo.

Ribbon

The riband colours represent Purple - animals, Green- land, Yellow – loyalty; and Blue - sea and sky.

Page 6

Warrant Officer Hunt has had

various postings to Land and

Training Command, being pro-

moted to Warrant Officer Class

two when posted to the Special

Forces Training Centre.

Warrant Officer Hunt was sub-

sequently posted back to the 4th

Battalion, Royal Australian

Regiment (Commando), in 2002

and served as the Company Ser-

geant Major of two commando

companies and the Operational

Support Company.

Warrant Officer Hunt deployed

to Operation Falconer as the

Company Sergeant Major of the

Bravo Commando Company

Group. It was for this operation

that Warrant Officer Hunt was

awarded the Commendation for

Distinguished Service in recog-

nition of distinguished perform-

ance of duties in a warlike opera-

tion.

For distinguished performance

in the provision of expert techni-

cal knowledge and commitment

to meeting operational require-

ments as the Company Sergeant

Major of Bravo Company, 4th

Battalion, Royal Australian

Regiment, in Iraq during Opera-

tion Falconer.

Presented by the Governor

General of Australia and Com-

mander–in-Chief of the Defence

Force on 27 November 2003.

COMMENDATION FOR

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE

Within the Australian System,

there are three decorations that

recognise distinguished service

in action or warlike operations,

HONOUR ROLL

Darren John HUNT

825689

Warrant Officer Class Two

Commendation for

Distinguished Service

Warrant Officer Class Two

Darren Hunt enlisted in the Aus-

tralian Army in 1986 and was

allotted to the Royal Australian

Infantry Corps. On completion

of initial employment training,

Warrant Officer Hunt was posted

to the 2nd/4th Battalion, Royal

Australian Regiment and then

the 2nd Battalion, Royal Austra-

lian Regiment, when they de-

linked. During this time he was

appointed as a platoon sergeant

in recognition of his outstanding

abilities.

In 1996 Warrant Officer Hunt

was posted to the Commando

Training Team at the 1st Com-

mando Regiment and assisted in

the conversion of the 4th Battal-

ion, Royal Australian Regiment,

to a full time commando unit.

Then in 1999 he was posted to

the 4th Battalion, Royal Austra-

lian Regiment (Commando), as

the reconnaissance platoon

sergeant.

All three, The Distinguished

Service Cross, The Distinguished

Service Medal and the Commen-

dation for Distinguished Service

were established on 15 January

1991 to recognise members of the

ADF and certain other persons

for distinguished command and

leadership in action or distin-

guished performance of duties in

warlike operations. All may be

awarded posthumously but only

the first two carry postnominal

entitlements. The Commendation

replaced the Imperial award of

the Mention in Despatches.

The insignia of the Commenda-

tion is a central Federation Star

on a nickel-silver row of flames

that taper at each end. The insig-

nia is worn attached to an ochre-

red riband 32 mm in width. A

miniature insignia is worm on the

riband bar.

Further awards for separate

actions are denoted by additional

Commendation insignia that are

attached to the riband above the

insignia of previous awards. No

additional insignia are added to

the riband bar.

Page 7

On Monday 12 June 2017, a

soldier left this life. On Tuesday

27 June 2017 a soldier was fare-

welled. One who offered his life

for so many was farewelled by

so few.

Private John Kenneth James

Barrett, a former 8 RAR soldier,

was farewelled in the presence of

16 people but only three from his

own association and four from

the 4 RAR Association. It

seemed that no one else cared

that a warrior was being fare-

welled even after so many invita-

tions to attend were distributed

by both associations.

John Barrett was formerly a

member of 1 ARU and 8 RAR in

Vietnam from June to November

1971 in service to his country.

John apparently led a solitary

life in his later years and the

most that is known is that he was

married twice and was estranged

from both families for some

twenty years. His adopted family

was the couple, Suzanne and

Johno Northcott and their young

daughter Sky who lived next

door. Sky called John, "Poppy

John" and John Barrett called

Suzanne and Johno, his "adopted

family".

John died in Greenslopes Pri-

vate Hospital and had nominated

Suzanne and Johno as his NOK.

It was some days after John’s

death that Johno and Suzanne

found a contact number for the

Vice President of the Malay and

Borneo Association, David

Brewer RAN. Dave then con-

tacted Alan Price because he also

was a member of that association

and of the RAR.

A WARRIOR DIED TODAY

Those in attendance were:

8/9 RAR; Pte Tim Anderson,

Pipe Sergeant and Pte Jay Hart,

Bugler, 8/9 RAR Pipes and

Drums, 8/9 RAR Assoc; Clive-

Mitchell-Taylor OAM, JP, Mar-

garet Mitchell-Taylor and Ken

Falvey. National Malay and

Borneo Assoc, Qld; David

Brewer. 4 RAR Assoc, Qld;

Alan Price, Maureen Price, Rick

Male, Adrian O'Bryan and David

Heit.

Not one of those mentioned

apart from his adopted family,

knew John personally. Only 2

had served within the same unit

as him and six from two different

associations did not know of him.

All however, were prepared to

farewell a warrior in the tradition

of our service and post service

life and the constitution of our

Associations on behalf of our

members.

A potentially lamentable situa-

tion was salvaged by those who

did attend but it is hoped that we

should never again experience a

warrior farewelled by so few. A

soldier should never be buried as

a pauper.

A soldier and a warrior asks no

more than to be recognised and

thanked as he departs for that

heaven reserved for soldiers.

PS. Please make a will and tell

those close to you where it is!

Alan notified Clive Mitchell-

Taylor the state representative if

the 8 RAR Association, and

passed the news onto him. As

Alan lived close to Suzanne, he

offered to be the liaison between

the family and the 8 RAR Asso-

ciation.

Their tasks were subsequently

divided in that Clive would in-

vestigate the actions to be taken

for John to be buried and Alan

would look after the family side

of things and present the military

eulogy for John at his funeral

service.

After a whirlwind for Clive of

receiving , "so what, nothing we

can do" and " not our responsi-

bility" from agencies that we

considered should be obligated

to assist, Clive made a break-

through and was able to arrange

a service for John prior to his

being cremated. Suzanne was

considered by DVA to be John's

next of kin and was notified that

$2,000 had been allowed to-

wards John's funeral. John had

unfortunately died intestate with

no will, with very little savings

and salvageable possessions.

That caused much heartache.

In the meantime, 8/9 RAR gra-

ciously provided a piper and bu-

gler for the service. The 4 RAR

Assoc provided the adornments

of slouch hat, bayonet and the

Australian National Flag. Alan

then wrote a military eulogy that

included a description of John's

service, a resume of his service

record and a poppy service

which he presented during the

Funeral service. Clive presented

Suzanne with the framed record

of service, the Australian Na-

tional Flag and the 8 RAR sash.

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Page 8

Page 9

treasurer Maureen Price and they

along with the other guests, were

piped into the auditorium.

Students at the service totalled

more than 1,100 and included

approx 50 teachers and another

50 family members and friends.

Like Mitchelton High School,

the students presented the whole

service and the school choir sang

a beautiful song regarding the

ANZACs. It was a wonderful

presentation.

The Dawn Service

The Dawn Service at The RAR

National Memorial Walk was a

cool morning with over 150 rep-

resentatives of the RAR from all

units present. Chelsea Wintour

accompanied her grandfather

Alan Price and also in attendance

were Major Chris Smith (Retd)

and his family, Michael Martyn,

Adrian O'Bryan, committee

member Rick Male and Ken

Carter our welfare officer.

After laying a wreath for 4

RAR at the RAR NMW, Alan

then laid a wreath at the new

RAR Place memorial adjacent to

Ferguson Park on Samford Rd.

Enoggera.

Redlands RSL Sub Branch

Ray Moore (4 RAR/RAAMC) one of our committee members, laid a wreath on behalf of 4 RAR at the parade conducted by the

QUEENSLAND REPORT

Mitchelton High School

On Friday 21 April, the 4 RAR

Assoc, Qld Inc was again invited

to share the ANZAC Day cele-

bration by the Mitchelton High

School in Brisbane. We have

been invited to their ceremony

now for some ten years. It is a

double honour for us to be in-

vited as Private Victor Neils Pe-

tersen who was Killed in Action

in Vietnam with us on 16 Febru-

ary 1969 was an old boy of the

school. Alan, Maureen Price and

Rick Male attended and Alan

and Rick laid a wreath dedicated

to Victor Neils.

Helensvale Primary School

The ANZAC Celebration con-

tinued on Monday 24 April with

Alan being invited to deliver the

address at the Helensvale Pri-

mary School on the northern

edge of the Gold Coast. This

was to be the 12th time that Alan

had delivered the address in 15

years of attendance at the school.

Again Alan was accompanied

by our "Sigfantry Corps" com-

mittee member Rick Male with

Redcliffe RSL Sub Branch,

where Alan Harcourt (4 RAR) is

the sub branch President and his

wife Linda is the Welfare Officer.

We thank all those who marched

and laid wreaths in all other areas

including Townsville, Tasmania

and the Northern Territory. Well

done! It is amazing how many

RSL sub branches are adminis-

tered by former 4 RAR members

all around the country.

ANZAC Day Brisbane

ANZAC Day in Brisbane saw 4 RAR present one of the largest RAR contingents with approxi-mately 50 marching including descendents of deceased mem-bers including the Max "Yogi" Upton (LM) family members who represented Max. The Mountney family members marched for their great, grandfa-ther and great, great, grandfather from World Wars 1 and 2 wear-ing their medals.

Our patron, LTCOL Brian Avery (Retd), Major John McGhee (Retd) and his grand-daughter rode in jeeps as did a 1 RAR Korean veteran, the former Pte Evan Bond who by invitation, marched with us with his grand-son as carer. A mix up in the or-der of march of the vehicles re-sulted in the 4 RAR Contingent being led by Pte Bond (1 RAR) (Another 4 RAR First!) followed by Brian Avery our patron, then John McGhee and then the con-tingent. Continued page 10

Page 10

Tasmania

Our Vice President Tasmania, Allan Wood, reports that we re-ceived an application for mem-bership from Robert “Bob” Les-lie Gillam in Tasmania, who served with us in South Vietnam from May to November 1971. We did have Bob on our associa-tion nominal roll but rather em-barrassingly, had never been in contact with Bob except by rou-tine emails.

It was a welcome surprise to receive an application for Ordi-nary Membership from him. Allan points out correctly that all known members residing in Qld, NT and Tas are considered asso-ciate members of the Qld asso-ciation and upon paying their annual fee, become Ordinary Members.

We sent a Bob a letter of wel-come, his unique membership card, the latest edition of the “About Us” and a previous copy of The Fighting Fourth. Bob’s wife replied,

“ Just wanted to say thank you

for Bob's acceptance of member-

ship to the 4RAR. Bob says how

pleased he was with the info he

received in the mail yesterday.

He is interested in paying extra

to get snail mail delivery as he

has no interest in most thing

electronic unless it is GPS or

echo sounders for his fishing

boat. (Not necessary, as included in fees)

It is the happiest I have heard

him for a long time. Even asked

me to organized a sticker for his

ute, plus cap and shirt which I

will do in near future.

Yours sincerely

Nancy Gillam”

Allan reports that he has con-tacted Bob and made him wel-come. Ed

From page 9 QUEENSLAND REPORT

Private Bond, 1 RAR Korea,

requested that he march with us

to show his appreciation for Alan

having his medals mounted and,

for assisting him in receiving the

Ambassador for Peace Medal

from the Korean Government.

He had never worn his medals or

marched previously. Alan later

presented Evan with a rather

amusing Certificate transferring

him from 1 RAR to 4 RAR in the

very temporary appointment of

Commanding Officer.

It was remarkable but totally

expected that while acknowledg-

ing the large crowd on the way,

we were all in step as we passed

the saluting dais and before we

all thinned out to our separate

watering holes to enjoy each

other's company and to remem-

ber. It was an excellent day and

one shared with other members

of 4 RAR including those from

East Timor and Afghanistan and

the other veterans that we met

during the course of the day. We

especially remembered and

raised a glass to all those who

could not or did not make it.

Family Ties

The 4 RAR Assoc, Qld re-ceived a phone call on 10 May 2017 from Mr David Powles. David is the nephew of Pte Keith Kingston-Powles who was KIA in South Vietnam on 21 Septem-ber 1971 at the Battle of Nui Le with 11 Platoon, D Company.

David served in The Gulf War and in East Timor with the RAN and wanted to join the 4 RAR Association as an Associate Members as does his brother, Nigel. David lives in WA and Nigel lives in NSW so both have been passed to their respective 4 RAR state associations as we al-ways do. What a great tribute to a family member as well as to a warrior. David is very desirous of contacting any one who served with Keith and wishes to know Keith better socially, who his mates were and what they got up to when no one was watching. Please contact David on 0430 298 998 or david.powles@asc.com.au.

Change. It is vital that the current committee surrender the flame to the younger ones coming behind us. We must never allow the name of 4 RAR to fade from our lips or to be overlooked by the modern soldier. It will take another large scale war before 4 RAR is given back to the Army, complete on the Order of Battle, that is a foregone conclusion but 4 RAR has a history that should never be forgotten either by the ADF or the general public. The 4 RAR Assoc, Qld Inc needs a change of faces, the old hands can still help but sometime us old soldiers must fade away.

Maureen and I have been at the helm, with the help of many others, now for 17 years. I therefore give notice that we will be retiring at the AGM of September 2019. Please look and ask around for a replacement Pres ident , Secre ta ry and Treasurer. It would be ideal if t h e y c o u l d s t a r t t h e i r apprenticeships as assistants during the 2017/2018 period prior to the 2019 elections.

Duty First,

Page 11

telephone, office furniture, trav-

elling, meals, parking, research,

entertainment, attendance at our

and other ESO meetings, minor

incidentals, time and energy

which are expended thankfully,

by each committee member.

All known unfinancial former

members of 4 RAR including

those of 4 RAR, 4 RAR/NZ

(ANZAC ) and 4 RAR (Cdo) are

regarded as Associate Members

but without voting rights or in-

formation by snail mail. All Fi-

nancial Members are classed as

Ordinary Members with voting

rights.

All Associate and Ordinary

Members are kept informed by

email and provided with copies

of The Fighting Fourth by email

free of charge. The only reason

for this is that it is easier for us

to maintain one large email list-

ing rather that separate ones.

This in effect, means that non

financial recognised Associate

Members are getting something

for nothing and that is not fair to

those who pay their annual sub-

scriptions because without them,

we would not have an associa-

tion. Raffles don't work!

We have the reputation of be-ing one of the best associations within the RAR. We have achieved this by confidently pro-viding an association that you and we, can be proud of.

To become a financial mem-ber, an application to join and details of the next AGM are in-cluded. A proxy means that your attendance is recorded and your vote is counted. A proxy is vi-tally important for those who live away from Brisbane and who wish to cast a vote.

FROM THE PRESIDENT

Membership.

Sometimes we are asked where

the $30.00 asked for annual fi-

nancial membership is spent and

rightly so. It is after all, your

money or at least, the money of

financial members.

It is spent in honouring our

widowed ladies by spending $45

a year each for them to attend the

Ladies’ Luncheon and to offer

all ladies a small gift in apprecia-

tion.

It is spent in writing, publish-

ing and mailing The Fighting

Fourth to over 900 members

three times a year and the in-

cluded costs for the provision of

paper, ink, envelopes, labels and

printing charges. It is spent on

wreaths for ceremonial occa-

sions, it is spent on the provision

of office consumables such as

paper, ink, postage stamps, post-

age and stationery. It is spent in

the delivery of RAP packs to our

sick and hospitalised, get well

and bereavement cards. It is spent

on computer and website upkeep.

It is spent on the provision of

displays and maintenance of the 4

RAR Annex of the Gold Coast

War Museum. It is spent on the

maintenance of the Year Book. It

is spent on the procurement of 4

RAR merchandise items for re-

sale and effectively and wisely

spent on items that benefit the

Association and it’s members at

all levels. Sometimes we also

respond at an Association and

personal cost to non financial

members, especially at funerals

and even to those from other

units and associations. The letter

from Clive Mitchell-Taylor

OAM, JP below, is much appreci-

ated.

A financial account is presented

to each General Meeting.

It is not spent on the vital mili-

tary library, research, electricity,

Page 12

THURSTONVILLE REUNION - LAST CHANCE

4 RAR REUNION

THURSTONVILLE -formerly TOWNSVILLE- 2017

4 RAR - 4 RAR/ NZ - 2/4 RAR - 4 RAR COMMANDO

17 – 22 September 2017

Mail: PO Box 4170 KIRWAN QLD 4817 Tel: 0406 591 018 Email: 4rar2017@gmail.com

Hi from sunny warm Thurstonville (Formerly Townsville). For the reunion week the weather looks promising with temperatures ranging between 26-28 degrees by day and 16-18 degrees by night with very little chance of rain, but bring a brolly anyway. This will be the last notification unless something im-portant arises but if you feel that you need to contact us, please don’t hesitate to ring or to email us.

Dress Standards, All functions are centrally held at the Townsville RSL on Charters Towers rd and nor-mal club dress standards apply. Rubber thongs are not allowed after 6 pm otherwise neat casual is the norm. Bring a hat. The minimum dress for the Meet and Greet and company functions is shirt with collar, shorts, sandals, boaties or runners and for the ladies neat and casual is the go.

Registration: Registration is at the RSL, upstairs in the “Jezzine” Room. There is a lift just past the recep-tion desk for the and another lift and stairs past the Bistro.

Ladies’ Luncheon. The Ladies’ Luncheon on Wednesday at the RSL will be from 12.00 MD in the “Jezzine” Room. We will have a raffle with multiple prizes as well as a li ucky door prize. And entertain-ment during the luncheon. Memorial Service. Assemble at 0845 hr to the left of the Tobruk Memorial Baths on The Strand facing the ocean with step off at 0915 hr. The service will commence at 0945 hr. Chairs under the cover of a marquee will be set up for all after the march and during the Memorial Service. Minimum dress for men is long trou-sers (NOT JEANS), shirt with collar and medals–jacket and tie are optional. If you wish to lay a wreath, please order from Daisy May Flowers 07– 4728 6868 to order and it will be delivered with ours on the day.

Group Photo. The group photo will be taken after the Memorial Service at ANZAC Park and will be avail-able at the Gala Dinner that night. If you are not attending the dinner, please make arrangements for some-one to collect your photo.

Old Photos. If you have any old photos from overseas deployments/back home on CD/DVD and would like to share them, bring them with you and we will show them during the Meet and Greet and company functions.

The Nui Le Gala Dinner. Payment and numbers for the dinner must be made before the Reunion com-mences as numbers have to be provided to the RSL the week before and it will be too late to advise us at registration, Attendees are to arrive no later than 1800 hr for an 1830hr start. Dress is dinner jacket/ suit and medals, evening attire for ladies. We have some great entertainment lined up for you and we guarantee it will be a fun night for everybody.

2 RAR Visit. Make sure that you bring photo ID as security at Lavarack Barracks is very tight. A great day has been organised with many exhibits of the new kit on display including small boats, tanks, ASLAV, dogs, demonstrations, open museum and WETS (Weapons Electronic Training Systems) and others as well as soldiers available to speak with the attendees. Timings for the visit are 1330hr to 1800hr. The Soldiers’

Club will be open from 1330hr for refreshments and a rolling BBQ will be available from 1430hr (Gold coin donation). Those wishing to participate in the WETS are not to drink alcohol beforehand. Trans-port will be provided to take groups to the WETS during the afternoon. The soldiers from 2 RAR are really looking forward to our visit. Dress is neat casual with covered footwear. Transport A bus will be provided for those visiting 2 RAR at a cost of $10 return. There is very little parking available except for the severely disabled. If you have not paid for the bus, please pay at registration.

Merchandise. In some ways we have been lucky as both suppliers have given us an extension of a couple of weeks so if you haven’t ordered a shirt or port, please ring or email your orders in now.

OUR AIM IS TO SEND YOU HOME WITH A SMILE ON YOUR FACE, WE SINCERLY

HOPOE THAT WE ACHIEVE OUR AIM