Left: Joan and Doug Gibson from Wheelers Hill, who met in Japan during World War Two, with their By Nathan Johnston
THE Noble Park RSL celebrated the 60th anniversary of Victory in the Pacific day on Monday, with 30 World War II veterans receiving commemorative medals in a special presentation.
Students from local schools joined the veterans from WWII and other battles at the ceremony.
Mulgrave MP Daniel Andrews, councillors Angela Long and Kevin Walsh, and Shadow Veterans’ Affairs Minister Bruce MP Alan Griffin also attended.
Noble Park RSL life members Arthur Fields and Bob Madden, along with local school students, laid wreaths before Mr Griffin presented the 30 surviving WWII veterans, widows and widowers with commemorative medals coined to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of the war.
A DVD presentation featuring interviews with local war veterans was then played. Students from the Lyndale Primary School, the Wellington Secondary College and the Noble Park Secondary College produced the DVD.
Noble Park RSL manager Mark Wilkinson said the celebrations were a fitting tribute to the veterans.
“It was a great day for the people who dedicated so much for us back in the 1940s,” he said.
“It was also an emotional day because it might have been the last chance we had to celebrate a major anniversary of VP Day with those who served.”
Students from Noble Park Secondary College, Noble Park Primary School, Harrisfield Primary School, Chandler Secondary College and Primary School, Wallarano Primary School and St Anthony’s Primary School also attended.
