00:00So this is your father?
00:02Yeah, this is Dad, this is Bruce Martin, he was a Dasho, served for some years ago now.
00:08It's wonderful, thank you so very much for your service and thank you for talking to us.
00:13I guess I wanted to say, what does Anzac Day mean for you?
00:19Oh, great to meet your fellow army mates and people you meet and the band, just everything.
00:28I don't afford it all year.
00:30Yeah.
00:55Your dad's past and history must be fascinating for you as well.
00:58Yeah, most definitely.
00:59Yeah, how do you feel, like, so where did he serve?
01:03Where was the national place?
01:05I was already to go, but I didn't go overseas.
01:10I'd done national training.
01:12National training, and what was that like?
01:15Oh, great.
01:16Yeah.
01:17Oh, great.
01:17Oh, great.
01:19All your buddies, and you're just, you work, everything's together, you're there to help each other,
01:26and you do it, and you never forget them days, for sure.
01:30Oh, yeah.
01:53And what do you wish young people would know now?
01:58Like, you know, the younger generation coming through?
02:02Just, people come up and think, yeah, they say, thanks to God, you're done, show your hands.
02:08People you've never seen before.
02:10Yeah.
02:10And I reckon the younger people can go now, and grab the lessons from you.
02:14Oh, there's so much, so much, everything.
02:19Thanks for their lives, they're living now.
02:22Yeah.
02:22And perhaps a sacrifice, yeah, those that may, early on, to live the life that we have now.
02:28Yeah, yeah.
02:29And have you ever looked into the army, like, with your dad's experience?
02:33Like, how do you feel about it?
02:34I guess so, yeah, it would be nice to serve, and we'll see what happens in the future.
02:39But certainly, for now, my priority is to look after that and those that serve the life site.
02:46That's really beautiful.
02:48And listen to the army stories.
02:51There's plenty of them.
02:52There's plenty of them.
02:53There's plenty of them.
03:10Our sub-branch looks out for tears for Adam, the Navy Cadets, and we're the dedicated sub-branch for Navy
03:16in Puerto, Navy Cadets.
03:19It's our pleasure.
03:39Thank you so much for talking to us.
03:41So what does Anzac Day mean for you?
03:45Oh, I suppose I've spent nine days short of 44 years in the army.
03:51So it's been a large, very large part of my life.
03:57And I've got a lot of good and bad memories of that time.
04:02Yeah.
04:02And Anzac Day brings them all to the service, to a certain extent.
04:10Thanks, John, I'm for a while, as we live for a while.
04:14I shall not remember them, for these can be.
04:18As they're going near in the sun, and in the morning, we will remember them.
04:24And you've got these on your jacket.
04:29What do they refer...
04:30What do they mean like these?
04:32Can you tell us what they are?
04:33They're my father's medals.
04:33Oh, right.
04:34He served in the Second World War and was a prisoner of war in the worst prison camp of the
04:40war.
04:41Oh, really?
04:42Death rate at 78%, whereas Chang'e and places like that, the worst places were 38%.
04:51Um, 1,352 Australian soldiers went over to Ambon and only 351 went back after three years and ten months.
05:03Wow.
05:04And these here are on your...
05:05They're my own medals.
05:07Yeah, wow.
05:12So, where have you seen Action, yourself?
05:16I was operational for a while, and I've served all over Australia, more than a war, but I've been ten
05:27years in Darwin.
05:28I've done a lot of time, and I've done a lot of time, and I've done a lot of postings,
05:35and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:18I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:37I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:37I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:38I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:38I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:39I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:39I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
06:41I've done a lot of jobs, and I've done a lot of jobs.
07:14What do you think it means for veterans
07:17when we remember ANZAC Day?
07:21I think it's very good.
07:26Most veterans, I think, are very grateful
07:28for when people come up to you
07:31and say thank you for your service.
07:33That all strikes a note.
07:38And I think ANZAC Day,
07:41everybody's a little bit warmer around ANZAC Day.
07:44And, yeah, but I think the more they can be thanked,
07:51the better everybody feels.
08:15And what do you wish people, civilians, knew
08:20about the experience of what it's like to be a veteran?
08:28I don't want them to know too much
08:31because I still have bad nights over it
08:35and things like that.
08:37But just be aware that people have put themselves on the line
08:42and some haven't come back.
08:47The people who have come back wear that scar.
08:54And I'm not asking them to wear the scar,
08:56but just be aware of it.
08:59And how can we best express our gratitude, I think?
09:04Like, just be respectful for everything.
09:07Yeah.
09:08I think we're back.
09:09Everybody, get up on everybody,
09:12generously, reach that up!
09:54What is your name?
09:55Jack.
09:56Jack, and you're a cadet.
09:58Yes, or officer of cadets, yes.
10:00Officer of cadets.
10:01It's lovely to meet you.
10:03Lovely to meet you too.
10:04Now, tell me a little bit about your role and what you do.
10:07Yeah, of course.
10:07So, I'm sub-Litendant Bolt.
10:08I'm currently an officer of cadets,
10:11a generalised role.
10:11So, basically, we take in the young kids,
10:15bring them into our base on Thursday night.
10:17Yes.
10:18We train them up for three or four hours.
10:19We teach them basic life skills.
10:21We take them out sailing.
10:23We take them, you know, across the country as well,
10:25experience different things.
10:27And, yeah, try and make it, you know,
10:28a better future for tomorrow.
10:30That's absolutely fantastic.
10:32I, um, and what do you think Anzac Day means?
10:35So, Anzac Day is very special to not only just me,
10:38but the broader community.
10:39It's about, you know, bringing our community together
10:41and celebrating those Anzacs that support for us
10:43and for our freedom and for those rights
10:45that we so lusciously enjoy.
10:47That's wonderful.
10:49And what about yourself, your future and your role?
10:52Do you go, do you then go through to active service or what?
10:57Yeah, so definitely.
10:58So, I'm currently in the application process for the Navy.
11:01So, I'm currently applying at the moment.
11:03So, yeah, hopefully all goes well.
11:06We should be up in soon.
11:07Well, thank you so much.
11:09I think that takes a lot of discipline.
11:11That takes a lot of courage.
11:12Definitely, definitely.
11:57Tell us a little bit about yourself.
11:59My name is Kathy McCarthy.
12:00I'm the secretary of the Surfers Paradise Irosol Subred.
12:04Yep.
12:04And we run a dawn service and a midday service every year for Anzac Day.
12:09We also do a Korean day on the 27th of July,
12:13Kokoda Day on the 10th of August.
12:16And remember it's day on the 11th of July, 11th.
12:20So, we're happy to welcome anyone along to our services.
12:25Aye, sir.
12:26Careful party.
12:27In first, third.
12:30Careful party.
12:32Break.
12:33March.
12:37I think I'm a great idea of that job.
12:50And what do you think it means for the veterans to see all the people coming to say thank you
12:57and pay their respects?
13:00They are actually very, very grateful.
13:03I have Nashos that fought in Vietnam who didn't get such a warm welcome home.
13:09And today they are in awe.
13:12And how many people are here to thank them for their service?
13:16Yeah.
13:17Yep.
13:17And what do you wish people knew about veterans?
13:23I suppose the most thing I'd like them to understand is the cost that they suffer going to fight for
13:34our nation.
13:36And, um, yeah, they, it's, I just think it's a tremendous sacrifice that, and they, uh, um, some of the
13:46most giving and kind people I know.
13:49Um, I'm personally not a vet and I, my mother and I do this just because we'd like one of
13:55this.
14:12Yeah, so what does Anzac Day mean to you?
14:15Together all.
14:16Yeah, yeah, together, yeah, for sure.
14:19Yeah.
14:22Anzac means it, means it, you know.
14:26They went over there to fight for freedom.
14:29Yeah.
14:31And they didn't do it real successfully, you know, between Cain and as the president of the club, we've maintained
14:37it.
14:38Yeah.
14:39Um, we try to endorse everything they say.
14:43Yeah.
14:44And Anz, she, she put a good speech for the common issue, so I agree with everything she said.
14:50Yeah.
14:51And what do you wish, um, civilians knew about the experience of what it's like to be a veteran or
14:59to, to know about service as intimately as you two gentlemen do?
15:03To be a veteran, it's hard.
15:09Yeah.
15:10Because you're not a bureaucracy, that's how I feel about it.
15:13Yeah.
15:14Yeah.
15:14Um, the different people have different views.
15:25Well, I guess from our point of view, we just need to say thank you, don't we?
15:30Yeah, we do.
15:30Yeah, exactly right.
15:31That's the idea of having the ceremony, saying thank you in our own life.
15:36Yeah.
15:37Yeah.
15:37And it's good to see the young kids coming along.
15:39There actually is, I think, do you think the crowds on Anz, they have been getting bigger and bigger in
15:45recent years?
15:46We did the morning service, didn't we do?
15:48Yes, yes.
15:48And it was about between three and four thousand, yeah?
15:51Yeah, they do seem to get a really good, which I'm really glad about.
15:56And yesterday, the MC said we did seven schools yesterday.
16:00Oh, that's great.
16:01And the school I went, you know, had 1,200 kids.
16:04Oh, that's fantastic.
16:05In the auditorium.
16:06Yeah.
16:06Oh, that's good.
16:07Pre-school of, you know, grade six or whatever they call it in these days.
16:11That's good.
16:12Yeah, and they all celebrated in the morning, yeah.
16:16Well, thank you.
16:17Thank you so much for your service and thank you for your time.
16:20Okay, thank you.
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