By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A part-time World War II militia unit who went beyond the call of duty in New Guinea will be permanently honoured at a footbridge across Monash Freeway at Narre Warren.
The bridge at Prospect Hill Drive will be named the Gippsland Regiment Bridge as part of a ceremony on Remembrance Day, 11 November.
The event will include veterans and family from the Gippsland Regiment – otherwise known as the 52nd Batallion.
Organiser Kevin Walsh says it is fitting to recognise the regiment – a group that was formed and based in the Dandenong district.
The original Battalion fought in the famous battle of Villers-Bretonneux on Anzac Day in 1918.
In World War II, the Regiment’s members who were the equivalent of a part-time Army Reserve were called up to fight in desperate circumstances.
While the first-choice soldiers were engaged in Europe, the regiment was deployed to New Guinea to defend Australia from a Japanese onslaught .
“These guys served the community and were from the community,” Mr Walsh said.
“They came to the aid of the community in its hour of need.”
On the regiment’s return in 1944, its bravery was highlighted by the then-Army Minister Francis Forde.
“These men have done all that has been asked of them,” Mr Forde said.
“They have been asked to do more than we could rightfully expect.”
A former Dandenong mayor and retired army major, Mr Walsh has included an array of community groups at the ceremony.
Attendees include 97-year-old regiment veteran Wally Whitmore, as well as a parade of defence force cadets.
Indigenous elder and Vietnam veteran Graham Atkinson, Japan’s Consul-General Kazuyoshi Matsunaga, Colonel Mike Kalms of the 4th Brigade, and the mayors of Greater Dandenong and Casey will be part of the presentation.
There will be a flyover by Peninsula Aero Club, a performance by With One Voice Choir and a Remembrance Day service that commemorates the end of World War I.
The ceremony is at Prospect Hill Road bridge, Narre Warren on 11 November, from 1pm.
Due to limited parking, patrons are advised to park and take a free shuttle bus from Max Pawsey Reserve, off Raven Crescent, Narre Warren. Buses run from 12.30pm.
