Remembrance Day

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
Lest we forget

Our Remembrance Day Commemorations, held at both the Primary and Secondary Campuses today, helped us to understand our history as a nation and who we are as a people.

So many of our young men and women never returned to their families, their friends and to a future that they deserved from the battles of conflict … and so many others returned but would never be the same again. Those who did return, had a simple message, that we must remember the fallen, and that we must always work as a nation to avoid war at all costs. This is a message that was relevant then, and with conflict still occurring throughout our world, is a message that remains so very relevant today.

At the Primary Campus, Remembrance Day was commemorated slightly differently this year as the day coincided with a whole school assembly where we celebrated students who had taken opportunities to extend themselves in sport and the arts. It was a celebration of our freedom to learn.

The students of 5M then guided us through a Remembrance liturgy that incorporated the traditional aspects of Remembrance services with a reading of The Ode, The Last Post and a minute’s silence followed by the Rouse.

Across the Primary campus during lessons this week, students have been analysing The Ode, making poppies, reading stories, and researching the history of this special day. Today, each student wore a poppy that they had created. The Lasallian STARS had gone one step further and created a poppy garden for display on the stage and in the reception area of the Primary campus so that “everyone can remember the importance of poppies.”

We were fortunate to have the Hon Mr Joe Szakacs, Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services and Labor MP for Cheltenham, in attendance for this occasion.

Most importantly today we were all reminded that we have both the freedom and the opportunity to explore who we are and develop our talents thanks to those who had gone before us and made the ultimate sacrifice.

Secondary staff and students also made special mention of the thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, who for so many years, went unrecognised during conflicts and paid the ultimate price with their lives.

At the secondary service, our Cadets formed a ‘catafalque’ around our ceremonial cross. In Australia, a catafalque party acts as sentries for the memorial or cenotaph during annual ANZAC and Remembrance Day commemorations.

Old Scholar, Alana Parisotto (Class of 2020), played a stirring rendition of The Last Post. In the military, The Last Post traditionally marks the end of the working day. The Last Post is a bugle call played during commemorative ceremonies to serve as a tribute to the dead.

As a College community we remembered today, with thanksgiving, those who made the supreme sacrifice for us in times of war. We pray that the offering of their lives may not have been in vain. We also dedicate ourselves to the cause of justice, freedom and peace; and for the wisdom and strength to build a better world.

Mr Damian Patton, Acting Principal