IT was a day of remembrance in Ultima on Saturday as the town re-dedicated its war memorial to mark its 100th birthday.
Member for Mallee Anne Webster, Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh and Swan Hill Council Acting Mayor Bill Moar attended the ceremony.
Cr Moar told The Guardian he found it “all very sobering” to read a list of deceased servicemen in the town hall following the service.
“I’ve been trying to put myself in these kids’ shoes,” Cr Moar said.
“I had barely reached puberty when I was 18, and to think these men went off to war and some didn’t come back, I just couldn’t imagine.”
A large crowd defied the cold, grey day.
“It was a magnificent crowd, especially considering it wasn’t the best day for it,” Cr Moar said.
“It was great to see the descendants of those who served here, and it was just a beautiful service.”
The Light Horsemen led three clergymen from the town hall to the cenotaph in a moving opening to the ceremony.
Ultima Progress Association member and event organiser Vivienne Wilson said that “the Light Horsemen was the highlight of the day”.
“It wasn’t just the kids who loved them – you could see the older people had a tear in their eye when they saw them trotting down the street.
“I was running around at that stage, but I have to say I had a tear in my eye when the descendants were laying their wreaths.”
After a blessing of the memorial ground, wreaths were placed at the foot of the monument.
The ceremony concluded with the Last Post and national anthem before attendees were invited to lay poppies on the monument and get photos with the Light Horsemen.
Cr Moar highlighted how vital monuments such as the one in Ultima are for our nation.
“Everything that’s left of these men in most places is the monuments in towns all over Australia – so many young men joined up like the boys from Ultima,” he said.
“If we don’t remember what happened in the past, we’re doomed to repeat it.
“They made the ultimate sacrifice for us to be free and live in this great country.”
Minister for Veterans Shaun Leane had similar thoughts.
“Monuments such as this remind us all of the immense contribution our current and former service men and women have made to our country,” he said.
Work at the site completed in 2019 extended the lawn area while adding a rose garden and lone pine.
Over the past month, the Ultima Progress Association has received grants from the Federal and State governments.
The federal grant will cover the cost of replacing broken concrete surrounding the monument.
The $15,000 state grant will employ a stone mason on a conservation project plan aligned with heritage principles to restore the monument.
The monument, erected at Ultima Recreation Reserve in 1922 in honour of World War I service, was moved to its present location on the corner of Dillon and Vernon streets in 1952.
Other tribute plaques have been added following later wars.
“The Ultima War Memorial is an important focus for the collective remembrance of historic and recent conflicts and the local people who served in them,” master of ceremonies Greg White said.
