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Back to 1963 index or Main Index Makan – No. 159 Dear Dig, Time is running away from us & the Reunion is on us once more. This will be our 17th Annual Reunion & once again we are changing the venue as our requirements become a little more demanding. We are trying the Great Southern Hotel this year where, we are told, we will be seated comfortably & will enjoy a more congenial atmosphere than the bareness & emptiness of our previous venue. The Reunion is the evening for you to meet old friends who will always be friends. Here is an opportunity for you to have a few words in comfort, as you would like. A glass of beer will be at hand, or something softer if you like, but there will be no hurry, no rush to go somewhere else, to keep an appointment or to get back to work. The Annual Reunion is a "must'' for you & we urge you not only to come yourself but cast around in your mind for those old mates of yours who may not have attended a reunion for a few years. Give them a ring & bring them along. The date of the reunion – Nov. 30th - is an excellent one. It will be election day & all the pubs will be shut. There will be few places in Sydney where you will be able to buy a drink on that day. THERE WILL BE NO SHORTAGE OF LIQUID REFRESHMENTS AT THE REUNION!!! THE REUNION The date: Saturday,30th
November. LAST POST Members will be sorry to hear of the death of Jimmy Deveigne who died suddenly & who was buried on 25th October. Bruce Ford represented the Unit at the funeral. Jim's death was completely unexpected &, sadly, his wife was overseas at the time. Jim was one of the less boisterous of the Unit and, consequently, may not have left the imprint that some of the lads did. But he was one of the majority of our family unit, a good soldier, always ready to carry his fair share of the responsibility & a good cobber to his mates. To Mrs. Deveigne & his family we extend the sympathy of the Unit. INFLUENCE OF THE UNIT I was looking at a local paper the other day & saw, as I often do, a photo of the Old Man inspecting a guard of school cadets. It was a good photo & the kids looked like real soldiers, some of them were perhaps very similar to what the Old Man himself was fifty years ago when he was commissioned in the Cadet Corps. The Old Man had his usual photogenic appearance of a hard, tough man, completely out of countenance with his actual softness of feelings. The Old Man inspects dozens & dozens of these parades & talks to the kids on service to their country in the persuasive way he has. Thousands of kids will remember this fierce-looking soldier with a chest of medals from the 8th Div. I thought this was good. The Old Man is, perhaps, one of, if not, the best known of our soldiers from the last war. It is good to know that thousands & thousands of young Australians, perhaps unfortunately soldiers in another war, will always remember the Old Man & the 8th Division. RAY KUSKEY REPORTS Ray's latest letter is worth printing as it is: "I duly received my copy of "Makan” & note your stamp thereon - 'You owe .. etc.' So I am sending my cheque for £5.5.0 Life Membership, which should. keep me out of your black books for a while. I am pleased to read the bits about the boys & I was particularly interested to read the letter from Noel Johnston after his visit overseas, & his reference to the graves of Frank Tuckey & Pte. McNamara who was a mate of mine in Changi. Mrs. McNamara lives quite handy to me, & I would appreciate having a picture of his grave for myself, or to pass on to her if she does not have one. Of course I will pay any costs involved. I am still able to hobble about, not enough to get around a golf course as I used to in the old days, so now I have taken up snooker & I've got very interested. I'm also able to take a little liquid refreshment occasionally (for medicinal purposes only?) so things could be worse”. HOSPITAL VISITATION This is still continuing. This month luckily we have had few patients. The monthly report from the Committee is as follows: In Concord during August, September: Bruce "Dutchy” Holland, Ray Donald, Arthur Piper, Arthur Purdon Also visited - Dave Warton, 22nd Bde. H.Q. - remember, of unarmed defence fame at Changi? Dave is now a T.P.I. Remember - hospital news any hour - 642-3932, Kevin Ward. BITS ABOUT THE BOYS Ron Stoner is currently managing the A.N.Z Bank at Narrandera. Jock McKenzie of Leeton suffered a nasty accident recently when he cut his hand severely. Jim Walshe likes the "New Look" of our "Makan". Lives at Chatswood, Sydney, does our Jim. Jimmy Strang of Berry is looking for a good builder in his district - a builder who does not regard all his customers as millionaires. Wally Scott, our mate from Fairy Meadow, attended a reunion of ex-8th. Division held recently at Wagga. Apart from the reunion Wally & family spent an evening with Curley Heckendorf & family and that in itself would be a pleasure worth going to Wagga. The reunion (writes Wally) was a great success & your friends, George Brown (A Coy), Bluey Grey (C Coy) & Jack McKenzie (HQ) were present & in full war cry. The Old Man attended too. Frank Hannan, ex H.Q. Coy., was seriously ill in Wollongong Hospital last month & is probably little improved so far. He suffered a bad turn just before retiring one night &, apparently whilst unconscious, his dressing gown & pyjamas caught alight from his cigarette. He was very badly burned. We hope that his recovery will be complete & as rapid as one could expect. Jack Black's two little children, Heather & Peter, are doing well in their music studies. Jack himself has not been keeping the best of health of late & has recently had a spell of sick leave. Sid Grounds was seen in the city recently. A mellowed man, clucking like a hen over his boys, Sid regards the world in general as a good institution & is content with his lot. Porky Evans is playing good golf these days. He is currently President of his local golf club. Des Kearney is now an importer in case you don't know & is doing very well. Always a high flier, Des deals only with top lines, one of them being the marvellous Gerber cutlery, reputed to be the best steel of its kind in the world. I was fascinated by this product when I saw a display in Beard Watson's window. Some of the blades cost over £10 each, but they were selling like hot cakes! Doug Blanshard also does well as a traveller & sells only tablecloths & bedspreads. I thought tablecloths had gone out of fashion (now that the local paper is bigger & free), but this wretched confidence man makes a good living from them. Do you remember Keith Jones of the Transport? He is now Metropolitan Supervisor of Gilbert & Barker, the people making a fortune from installation of petrol bowsers. Keith is a member of Gladesville R.S.L. Club. Jack Boss met Wal Eather at Tamworth recently. Wal has retired from the position of R.S.L. President at Tamworth but, of course, still takes a lively interest in R.S.L affairs. Wally's greatest joy at the moment are his grandchildren. Makes one feel old, doesn't it? (mmMmm) Ray Michell, a close buddy of Wally Eather, manages a service station just on the outskirts of Tamworth. "Doc" Wilson is working in a hardware store at Eastwood. Both Doc & Mrs. Doc are keen 10-pin bowlers. A FIRST WARNING Don't forget to attend the ceremony of remembrance at the Cenotaph on the evening of January 14th, 1964. Full details in the Christmas "Makan'". HE’S A KEEN BOY Jack Greenwood, in reply to a question from Cecily Boss as to whether he would be attending the Annual Reunion said - "The only thing which could stop me would be to have two broken legs?" The reply came from like a flash & I think would be a fair statement of his attitude to the Unit. BATTALION TIES Our new supply has arrived & for £1 - you will receive your tie as quickly as Bessie can send it. If you have always wanted a tie but didn't have a collar and now find you have a collar and no tie, then order NOW as we have found that no matter how many ties we buy, they always seem to be sold fairly quickly. FROM JAPAN A card from Harry Collins, holidaying with his wife and with the Arch Thorburns in Japan, promises some good stories for the "Makan" when they return. They will be back, of course, for the Reunion. STORK STORIES New babies to our members are becoming a rarity & you'll be delighted soon when a new arrival comes along to one of our best known members. Perhaps the event is so rare for our Unit now that we have got out of the habit of recording such happy events. My wife has not forgotten, however, & I have been severely chastised for not recording the birth of our own No.4 Son John, making 6 in all, who arrived in our home a few months ago. This boy is a champion, born l0lbs 4 ozs, & must finish up a heavyweight boxer or a cardinal at least! He has succeeded as babies do of re-aligning the whole household until it revolves around him. We have a roster system for the kids for 'nurses' & a stop-watch is essential to prevent bloodshed within the family who queue up for the privilege of holding him! If you haven't a baby in the house now you're missing something. Think about it! ANNUAL REUNION Saturday 30 November, 6.30 p.m., GREAT SOUTHERN HOTEL, GEORGE ST. £2 See you there, Stan Arneil Back to 1963 index or Main Index |