Keith Pitt (Hinkler, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to acknowledge the great work of Malcolm Webb, the current president of the Woodgate RSL Sub Branch. I had the good fortune last week to attend the dedication of their new memorial, which was built with the help of a $10,000 grant from the federal government as part of the Centenary of ANZAC. It was a great pleasure to represent the minister on that day. But an important thing that I was not aware of until I arrived on that day, 19 February 2015, is that it was the anniversary of the commencement of the Dardanelles campaign. So they were very selective about the date they chose for the unveiling of those memorial. The event was well attended by members of the local community, a small beachside community, including Harry Smith, who came up from Hervey Bay. Harry, a retired lieutenant-colonel, was a platoon commander at the Battle of Long Tan in Vietnam. I would also like to thank Brian Tidyman, from the Hervey Bay RSL, who went out of his way to bring along the Anzac flame, one of only 20 Australia-wide, which the Hervey Bay RSL is recipient and keeper of, and show it around the electorate of Hinkler. It was a great opportunity.

The memorial has four pillars—representing the Army, Navy, Air Force and Nursing. You can imagine the dawn service at a memorial where the sun will peak over the top of the sand dunes on a beach that is 15 kilometres long and generally deserted. It will be a fabulous dedication to the men and women of the Australian services. I was very fortunate to be there, and certainly Woodgate is one of the best kept secrets in Australia.

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