TOUKLEY RSL SUB BRANCH. Newsletter

Transcription

1 TOUKLEY RSL SUB BRANCH Newsletter Issue 44 February 2019

2 From the President: A very happy new year to all of our members and their families. I trust that you had a very happy Christmas and hope that 2019 is a very happy and healthy one for us all. Welcome to the first Newsletter for The annual Merchant Mariners Day was held at Norah Head on Saturday 1 December The Sub Branch has been supporting the Merchant Mariners Day for a number of years now, and last year was no exception. Representation at this event was made by members of the Committee and a wreath was laid on behalf of the Sub Branch. Thank you to those who attended, and to Allan Love for driving the Sub Branch bus. Photos from the day appear in the Photo Gallery Section of this Newsletter. The Extraordinary State Congress was held on Tuesday 4 December 2018 in Sydney with Treasurer Milton Porter and myself attending. Representatives from Sub Branches across the State voted on the Draft Constitution which was voted against by a majority of 68%-32%. State RSL will now go back to the drawing board to come up with a new Draft Constitution which will be voted on at the May 2019 Congress in Albury. I will keep you informed on any developments in the meantime. We finished off another successful year with the Sub Branch Christmas Party held on Sunday 16 December upstairs in Club Toukley RSL. As usual, it was a fun event and we all enjoyed a fabulous three course dinner whilst being entertained by the ever popular Brassick, with guest guitarist Reverend Tim Waghorn. 96 Sub Branch members and partners attended the day. A selection of photos appear later in this Newsletter. Thank you to the Committee who helped out on the day by setting up and selling raffle tickets: Allan Love, Ian Collier and Tom Hobbs. Just a reminder that all of our raffles are negatively geared and no profit is made from ticket sales thus the excellent array of prizes at our functions!

3 At the December General Meeting, the Members voted in favour of the Committee proceeding with Stage 3 of the Cenotaph Memorial Gardens upgrade. As mentioned previously, this upgrade will include demolishing the current sandstone cenotaph and building a new granite cenotaph on the same site, an eternal flame on top, the replacement of the current sandstone walkway with granite, including disabled access, a new stainless steel fence at the front of the gardens along Main Road, a hedge garden on the southern side of the Memorial Gardens, and an inscription on the walkway from Main Road. We are planning to have all of this new work completed in time for Remembrance Day A proposal was prepared and lodged with State RSL, prior to Christmas, for approval for us to proceed. I am very pleased to report that on 14 January 2019 we received formal approval from State RSL to go ahead with the Stage 3 work, as outlined above. We can now begin to move forward to have this necessary upgrading work commenced. I will keep you updated, both at the General Meetings and in the monthly Newsletters, with developments. The Sub Branch AGM will be held on Sunday 17 February 2019 at 10.00am sharp. Doors will close at this time. Just a reminder that the current Committee has another year to run, so there will not be an election for the Committee at this AGM. However, at the 2020 AGM, the current Committee will step down and voting will take place for a new Committee to serve for the following three years. Anzac Day will soon be upon us again and, as is usual for this time of year, the Committee is gearing up for another busy few months, with representatives to attend 19 services at Aged Care Facilities and schools, as well as Wallarah Bay Recreation Club and our own two services on Anzac Day. Preparations are well under way and we are expecting large crowds again this year for both the Dawn and Morning Services. I am constantly in awe of the number of people who get up early on Anzac Day morning to attend the Dawn Service in our home town and bring their children and grandchildren. It is a wonderful mark of respect for those who have served this wonderful country. Tickets for the Anzac Day luncheon will be available at the March General Meeting at a cost of $10.00 each per member/partner. A two course lunch and

4 entertainment will be provided. Please get in early if you would like to attend this function, as tickets will sell quickly. All in all, 2019 is promising to be another busy year for the Committee, as we continue to move forward to achieve good outcomes for the Sub Branch and Members. Bob Wilson President Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced. NEW SUB BRANCH MEMBERS Welcome to the following new Sub Branch Members: Elizabeth Layt ****************** VALE Alfred Sidney (Sid) TURNER 19 December 2018 Clifford Seddon 26 January 2019 Lest We Forget INTERMENT OF ASHES AT THE CENOTAPH MEMORIAL GARDENS Donald Kevin NEWLING 13 December 2018 Donald Keith WATTS 22 December 2018 Lest We Forget

5 DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Sub Branch General Meetings are held on the first Monday of each month, At 10.00am, upstairs in Club Toukley RSL, with the exception of January. All Members are invited to attend. Sunday 17 February am Sub Branch AGM. There will not (Doors close at 10.00am sharp) be an election for the Committee. Thursday 25 April am Anzac Day Sunday 28 July am-4.00pm Christmas in July Monday 11 November am Remembrance Day Sunday 15 December 2019 Sub Branch Christmas Party 11.00am 4.00pm Keeping your Sub Branch Details Up to Date If you have recently moved, or your details have changed, please let the Sub Branch Office know so that we can update your address and contact details. This information is required so that we can send any correspondence and membership renewals to the correct address. Also, if you know of a member who has moved, either to another area or to an Aged Care Facility, please notify the Sub Branch Office.

6 Puzzle Corner Where Am I? In the fifteenth century I was colonised by Christopher Columbus and named Isla Juana after Juan, Prince of Asturas. Today I am an independent republic made up of a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. I am considered part of Latin America and am also a founding member of the United Nations. My capital and most populous city is Havana. Trivia Time 1 Which country has not fought a war since 1814? 2 What is a group of frogs known as? 3 What is the second largest city in Western Australia? 4 What is the Roman Numeral for 68? 5 Sir Ernest Edward "Weary" Dunlop, AC, CMG, OBE (12th July nd July 1993) was an Australian surgeon who was renowned for his leadership skills as a POW of the Japanese during WWII. Prior to WWII while studying medicine at Melbourne University he participated in a sport in which he eventually represented Australia. What was this sport? 6 Where is the longest highway tunnel of the world situated? 7 What is the capital of Turkey? 8 What is the name of the world s largest ocean? 9 Where are Bugatti cars made? 10 In which New South Wales town is the Big Merino located? (Answers at the end of this Newsletter)

7 Some Unusual Facts 1 Blueberry jelly bellies were created especially for former American President, Ronald Regan. 2 The names of the continents all end with the same letter with which they start. 3 Vermont, Alaska, Hawaii and Maine are the four States in the US that do not allow billboards. 4 Racehorses have been known to wear out new shoes in one race. 5 Hummingbirds are the only animal that can also fly backwards. 6 The only two animals that can see behind itself without turning it s head are the rabbit and the parrot. 7 Bulls are colour blind. 8 Half of the world s roundabouts are in France. 9 Nepal is the only country in the world whose flag is not square or rectangular shaped. 10 The opposite sides of a dice cube always adds up to 7. *************** World War Two Facts World War II was the most destructive conflict in history. It cost more money, damaged more property, killed more people, and caused more far-reaching changes than any other war in history. It is estimated that 1.5 million children died during the Holocaust. Approximately 1.2 million of them were Jewish and tens of thousands were Gypsies. The Battle of the Bulge is the largest and deadliest battle for U.S. troops to date, with more than 80,000 American deaths

8 The Enola Gay became well known for dropping the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, but few people know the name of the B-29 that bombed Nagasaki. It was Bock s Car, named after the plane s usual commander, Frederick Bock. Dr. Josef Mengele (the Angel of Death ) used about 3,000 twins, mostly Romany and Jewish children, for his painful genetic experiments. Only about 200 survived. His experiments included taking one twin s eyeball and attaching it on the back of the other twin s head or changing the eye colour of children by injecting dye. In one instance, two Romany twins were sewn together in an attempt to create conjoined twins. Hitler designed the Nazi flag. Red stood for the social idea of Nazism, white for nationalism, and the black swastika for the struggle of the Aryan man. Even before WW2 had started Hitler predicted in his book "Mein Kampf" a European War that would exterminate all of the Jews from Germany. The word Holocaust is from the Greek words ""holos" (whole) and "kaustos" (burned)" Hitler viewed the Jewish race as a menial race of people that were below the pure bred German Aryan, this hatred eventually caused Hitler to try to exterminate the Jewish Race in what became known as the Holocaust The Nazis used "concentration camps" to hold millions of Jewish people where they would work and starve until they were "exterminated" in gas showers using a pesticide called Zyklon-B. As many as 12,000 Jews were killed everyday inside these concentration camps Most of the concentration camps where located in Poland, with the biggest ones being Belzec, Chelmno, Sobibor, Treblinka, Majdanek and the biggest and most notorious of all concentration camps Auschwitz-Birkenau. Auschwitz Concentration Camp is responsible for the killing of over 2 million Jews. Many books and diaries have been published about Jews in Germany during WW2 and how they struggled. The most famous of these was the Diary of Anne

9 Frank. Her diary has been translated into over 60 languages and is taught in schools worldwide The First Atomic Bomb ever made was created during WW2 by the Americans and was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The bomb in a matter of seconds wiped out 90% of the city and killed 80,000 people. Three days later, another Atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki killing another 40,000. ******************* Toukley RSL Sub Branch Bus Trips Introduction of Drones to Army Units. During a recent visit to the Hyde Park Barracks, members of the Sub Branch observed some military personnel being instructed in the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS or DRONES ). The Drones are DJI Phantom 4 multi-rotor UAS units. The Army is becoming Australia s largest user of this equipment with over 350 about to be deployed nationwide. The Drones can be employed for aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance also videography in hazardous areas. The Phantoms were recently used at the Woomera Rocket Range to support Hell Fire Missile trials. From a bunker a team filmed the launch and missile impacts at a distance over 8.5klms with no personnel within trace or outside of the bunkers. The possibility for their use are only limited by an army unit s imagination said one senior officer. Training for personnel in the use of the UAS s started in September 2018

10 DJI Phantom 4 multi-rotor UAS unit. If you have any queries regarding bus trips, please see Committeeman Bob Swift. If you have an idea which you think could benefit or improve the Sub Branch, please put it in writing or speak to one of our Committee Members. Remember that we are there to represent the members, so if you have any ideas, then please let us know In this year South Australia became the first colony to grant women the right to vote a year after New Zealand.

11 Toukley RSL Sub-Branch ANZAC Day Holmes Avenue Toukley Commemorative Services Thursday 25 th April 2019 Dawn Service - Toukley RSL Cenotaph commences 05:20 am. Morning Service At Toukley RSL Sub Branch Cenotaph March from Toukley shops, Village Green to Toukley RSL commences at 09:45 am. Service commences on completion of the march

12 Photo Gallery Merchant Mariners Day, Norah Head Saturday 1 December 2018

13 Sub Branch Christmas Party Sunday 16 December 2018 Allan Love, Tom Hobbs and Ian Collier selling raffle tickets at the Christmas luncheon

14 Life Changing Principles (Shared with you from GMS Legal and Conveyancing) 1 Love the people who are important to you, and tell them. 2 Admit when you are wrong. Forgive yourself then fix it. 3 Live life fearlessly. Back yourself. 4 Be grateful. 5 Energise your day with a walk and clear thinking. 6 Give sincere appreciation every day. 7 Smile, and other people will smile with you. 8 Try not to hold a grudge. It s better for your health. 9 Take control of your own destiny. 10 If you can dream it, you can achieve it. If you do what you ve always done, you ll get what you ve always gotten.

15 Where am I? CUBA TRIVIA TIME Answers 1 Sweden 2 An army 3 Bunbury 4 LXV111 5 Rugby Union 6 Norway (The Laerdal road tunnel which is 24.5 kilometres long) 7 Istanbul 8 The Pacific Ocean. It occupies approximately one third of the Earth s surface. 9 France. 10 Goulburn *************** Newsletter Articles I am always on the lookout for newsy and interesting items to include in your monthly Newsletter, so if you have something that you think could be shared with your Sub Branch colleagues, then please let me know. Your feedback is always welcome. What would you like to see in the Newsletter? Is there anything that could be omitted? Anything that could be included? All ideas will be considered. (Ian, Your Friendly Newsletter Coordinator.)

16 TOUKLEY RSL SUB BRANCH Patron: President: Vice Presidents: Secretary: Treasurer: Committee: Telephone: Fax: Pensions & Welfare: Bob Williamson (Welfare) Graham Tredinnick (Welfare) Bob Swift (Welfare) Stephen Edmunds (Welfare) Newsletter Co-ordinator: Phone: Karen McNamara Bob Wilson Tom Hobbs George Meier Graham Tredinnick Milton Porter Ray Sutton Bob Swift Allan Love Ian Collier Brian Murphy Stephen Edmunds Ian Collier