ANZAC DAY
Personal recollections
When it is still dark, while the sun is just
about to hit the surface, you can hear the
trumpet playing as loud as it can to wake the
soldiers up.
Personally I was excited to be a part of the
ANZAC Dawn Service. To get up at 5.00am
might sound hard but it was a real honour to
be like an ANZAC just for one morning and
to feel the ANZAC spirit flowing through me.
My favourite part of the Service was the
re-enactment of the landing at Gallipoli,
especially when the boys were creeping in
to the shore. It was all silent, then BANG,
the action had started. It was a wonderful
experience and I will remember it forever.
Braydon Keith Fernandes (Year 6)
What is ANZAC Day? To me it’s a day when
we commemorate all the soldiers who died
in Gallipoli.
This ANZAC Service was my first ever service
and it was really good. On the morning
I was really nervous since I had to do a
reading to remember all the Guildfordians
who died at war. The Service was really
good and I loved the re-enactment of the
soldiers storming the beach of Gallipoli. It
reminded me of ANZAC Cove when I visited
Turkey last year.
All the Guildfordians will never be forgotten
and they will always be remembered.
LEST WE FORGET.
Earl Wijayananda (Year 6)
On Friday 24 April at 5.30am, I was at the
Boat Shed getting ready to speak my part in
Guildford Grammar School’s ANZAC Service.
It was freezing and the sky was still black.
Luckily they were serving hot bacon and egg
rolls to keep us warm. Half an hour later, lots
of people started to arrive and for the first
time, I started to feel nervous.
Taking my spot next to two Senior School
boys, the Service started. I was really scared
because lots of people had turned up.
Everybody felt for the drama students who
were re-enacting the Gallipoli landing, and
had to step in the cold Swan River. Just
before half way through the service, the
wind changed direction and was blowing
towards us. I was terrified because I was so
cold I was shaking, and my turn to speak was
coming up.
It turns out it wasn’t that bad and after I had
my turn I was able to enjoy the rest of the
Service. It was a relief when the sun rose
and it got warmer. The ANZAC Service was
amazing, but most of all, it was very, very cold.
Hannah Dell (Year 6A)
Comments from our community
• A moving and emotional service, one I will remember for years to come. The chilly
gust of wind that moved through the trees and crowd, just as the soldier filled
boats landed at the rowing shed, was quite eerie! Lest we forget.
• Even the cold couldn’t dampen the effect of this morning’s service. Thank you to
everyone who had a hand in this morning’s service.
• This morning was a very poignant and moving service. The service was made all the
more tangible by the students remembering those fallen Guildfordians, who are
but a few years younger than those speaking. We are proud to be part of a school
which honours and remembers its past, whilst enthusiastically embracing its future.
• What a moving and memorable service! Congratulations to everyone involved.
We got the rather emotional experience of seeing our son ‘die’, but, unlike many
unluckier parents of times past, he was returned to us unharmed, full of life and
tales about the boys on the boats, wet legs, drama and camaraderie. I think we all
admired the boys’ stoicism, especially the cadets in their not very warm uniforms,
which must be some small reflection of the stoicism of our boys on the battlefields
of war. I don’t think there are very many dry eyes among those who attended
today. Thank you. It was a fitting tribute to our fallen boys. RIP xx
•
A beautiful way to remember those who gave their lives to enable us to enjoy such
a good life. Lest We Forget.
• Yes, well done Guildford Grammar staff for organising such a wonderful
remembrance service. It was very moving to hear letters read out and see old
school photos of the Guildford boys who served and paid the sup ɕ