June 4, 2018
Wondai will be hosting its very special Reserve Forces Day parade again on Sunday, July 1.
The aim of Reserve Forces Day, which is a national annual event, is to raise the profile of the Navy, Army and Air Force Reserve, to recognise former and serving Reservists and to thank partners and employers for their support.
More than 1.25 million Australians have served in the nation’s Reserves at one time or another.
It is very unusual for a town of Wondai’s size to hold a commemoration, but this is actually the 13th year one has been organised.
Wondai has proud links with the Army Reserves – and the former Citizens Military Forces (CMF) – through its hosting of a depot of the 25th/49th Royal Queensland Regiment.
25/49 RQR has a distinguished lineage, tracing its roots back to the 8th Company Queensland Volunteer Rifle Brigade which was formed in Toowoomba in 1875.
Members have served in both World Wars and, more recently, in the Solomon Islands, East Timor, the Sinai, Iraq and Afghanistan.
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Wondai’s Reserve Forces Day commemoration is organised by a small committee headed by local resident Noel Selway – a former Army Reservist who served for nearly eight years.
As well as the parade, the Reserve Forces Day commemorations in Wondai always include a popular bowls day to allow visitors to enjoy a weekend in the town.
The Bowls Day will kick off at 10:00am on Saturday, June 30, with a barbecue lunch at 1:00pm at the Wondai Bowls & Golf Club.
The bowlers will be competing for the Wondai Armed Forces Challenge Shield.
The main day of the commemorations will begin at 10:00am on the Sunday (July 1) with a flag-raising and wreath-laying ceremony at the war memorial outside Wondai Town Hall.
Marchers will then assemble outside the Wondai Post Office for the annual parade which will start at 11:00am.
The parade will continue down Mackenzie Street into Coronation Park for a short service.
Marchers will then retire to the Wondai Diggers Club to share memories and enjoy fellowship.
“There are many people locally to thank for letting us get as far as we have (for 13 years), as well as the loyalty shown by many in the ex-service community who have chosen to always be here on the occasion,” Noel said.
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Every year the Wondai organising committee selects an arm of the Defence Force to be highlighted and commemorated.
This year it is the turn of the RAAF and – as it is the centenary of the Armistice – the spotlight has been shone on the Australian Flying Corps, the forerunner of the RAAF, who were active during World War I.
The AFC flew in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), Palestine and on the Western Front in France.
By the end of World War I, more than 3700 officers and men had served in the AFC.
About one-third of all pilots were either killed, wounded or taken prisoner. As well, the AFC lost 60 aircraft over enemy lines.
This year is also the 70th anniversary of the re-raising of the Citizens Military Force after World War II, and the 20th anniversary of the initiation of the Reserve Forces Day Parade nationally.
