February 18, 2026
After more than two decades of supporting local defence force veterans, Kingaroy’s Totally and Permanently Disabled Soldiers Association is winding up.
The decision to close the group, which had been meeting monthly at the Kingaroy RSL Club, was discussed on Tuesday with the final meeting to be held on March 17.
The group currently has 13 members and seven associate members.
President Barry Haydon said the problem was everyone was getting old and “no one was stepping up to help”.
“We have been providing assistance as required,” he said.
“Sometimes it’s just a shoulder to cry on, sometimes it’s financial and sometimes it’s just a general ‘How are you going mate?’.”
But he said the major aim of the monthly meetings had been to provide “mateship and fellowship”.
The group’s membership consists of Vietnam veterans and their wives, and one Afghanistan veteran and his wife.
Barry said assistance for veterans would still be available through the local Kingaroy-Memerambi RSL Sub-Branch.
And a new Drop-In Centre for veterans was also planned to be built on a vacant block of land in Haly Street, Kingaroy.
